


Family Ties

by Faith280



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Deals with severe child abuse/shaken baby syndrome, F/F, M/M, Mentions of drug/ heroin abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2020-07-09 18:14:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 23,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19892167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faith280/pseuds/Faith280
Summary: Marriage wasn’t exactly as Carolina thought it would be. She loved her new wife and daughter more than anything, but family was a strange concept to her.When a nightmare from her daughter’s past comes back to threaten her family, she’ll do whatever it takes to protect them...





	1. Chapter 1

“‘Lina, I need to run down to office to drop off these charts. Would you mind handling the last minute details for Maddie’s party? I won’t be gone long, twenty minutes tops.” She gave Carolina a pleading look.

  
Carolina sighed and rolled her eyes. No, she did not want to plan a birthday party for a bunch of two year olds, but she took the list from her wife anyway.

  
“Sure, go ahead, the sooner you leave, the sooner you’ll get back.” She skimmed over the list, it didn’t seem too bad, but the party was due to start in an hour, would she have enough time?

  
“Thanks babe, I love you.” She gave her a big kiss. Carolina felt guilty about giving her attitude about it. After all, Maddie was technically her daughter too.

  
“I love you too Em.” And she really meant it.

  
Maddie came into the kitchen, she was already her new party outfit, a light pink outfit, with a dark pink heart on the blouse. She had picked it out herself. She saw her two Moms standing together and went to give them both hugs.

  
“Party party party! I get to have a party!” She couldn’t stop giggling over it.

  
Carolina’s bad mood melted away, Maddie always had that effect on her. It was hard to keep her usual pessimistic attitude with her and Dr. Grey around. She wished she could be as happy as they always were.

  
Grey laughed and sang along with Maddie. “Yes sweetie, you get your very first birthday party.”

  
Shortly after adopting Maddie, it became clear to Grey that her birth parents never gave her anything except abuse. She knew Maddie never had that milestone first birthday party. She was determined to change that for her little girl.

  
She bent down to kiss Maddie’s cheek. “You be a good girl and help Mommy out. I’ll be right back. Ta-ta.”

  
Carolina’s feeling of dread returned. She was still trying to get the hang of this ‘Mom’ thing. She didn’t think she’d ever be good at it. But Maddie took ahold of her hand and looked up her with those big, blue, trusting eyes.

  
“Don’t worry Mommy, I can help you.” She sounded so serious.

  
Carolina pulled out the list. “Well, what do we start with?” May as well get advice from the kid.

  
She had no idea how to read, but she promptly pointed to the third point on the list. “There, that’s what we start with.”

  
Carolina read the note. “Decorate the party table. That doesn’t sound too hard.” She grabbed the pink and white streamers from the bag on the kitchen table.

  
“I wanna do it!” Maddie tried to jump up to grab them from Carolina’s hand.

  
“Do you know how?”

  
“Yeah yeah yeah.”

  
Carolina handed the steamers over. “Alright, start on it. I’ll be right there. I need to get the grill ready.”

  
There was a knock at the back door. “Oh god, what now?”

  
Maddie’s best friend from daycare, Janie, was standing on the porch with her Mother, Sylvia Thompson. The kids have been to each other’s houses several times, but Carolina never cared for Sylvia much. Janie was the only child she knew as shy as Maddie was.

  
“Sylvia…hello, it’s nice to see you again. The party’s not for another hour…”

  
Sylvia interrupted her. “Oh, I know that. I had a lot of errands I need to run. I knew you and Emily wouldn’t mind me dropping Janie off a little early.” She gave Carolina her best fakey polite smile.

  
Carolina had to take in a deep breath to keep her temper in check. Janie was a nice, quiet girl, she had no problems with her, it was her mother. She needed Emily here, she knew how to handle her.

  
Carolina returned her fake smile. “No, of course not, we’re happy to have her.”

  
Sylvia pushed her daughter through the door. “See you later tonight. Have fun honey.”

  
Carolina rolled her eyes, she couldn’t stand that woman. Janie was always so quiet, she felt strained to make up a conversation with her. It was easier to lead her to Maddie. The two talked up a storm together.

  
“Okay Janie, Maddie’s our here decorating, you want to help her?”

  
She nodded, she was still awfully shy with Carolina. “Uh-huh.” She led Janie out to the backyard.

  
“Okay girls, have fun.” Maddie had the steamers all tangled together, but she seemed to have a plan on how she wanted it. Carolina smiled and let her go.

  
She carried over the big bag of charcoal. She could at least start the grill, actually cooking the hamburgers was a whole other problem. She heard a crash at the table. She forgot all about the girls.

  
All the plates and silverware were all over the ground. “Oh Maddie, your Mom worked all morning setting the table up. We’re running out of time as it is. Take Janie and go play on your swings.”

  
Maddie looked sad. “Aww Mommy, I wanted to help.”

  
“That’s okay, you can help by entertaining your guest for me.”

  
She looked satisfied with that. “Okay, let’s go Janie.”

  
Carolina tried to figure out how to tackle the mess when a familiar voice called out. “Knock knock ‘Lina, Can I lend you a hand?”

  
She was never so glad to see Wash in her life. The military was nothing compared to her battles with this domestic life.  
She didn’t want to admit though.

“No…yes, you can lend me both hands. I have no idea what I’m doing. The rest of the kids will be here soon. Emily’s not back yet, Maddie is trying to help…” She was at a lost for her problems.

  
Wash chuckled, his bright blue eyes shined warmly. He knew all too well how hard it was to readjust to a family life.

  
“You got it. I’ll call Tucker to come over early with the kids, he’ll handle the party guests. The two of us can handle this mess until Emily gets back.”

  
Carolina smiled. “You’re the best backup ever Wash.”

  
She momentarily forgot about the kids. There was another loud crash, this time from the kitchen. Maddie starting screaming. Carolina ran to her, she sounded like she was hurt.

  
The sight she saw was just as bad. Maddie had tried to move her birthday cake, and it crashed to floor. There was pink and white icing over all the kitchen floor. Carolina let her temper get away from her, she had too many catastrophes to play it cool.

  
“You’ve got yo be kidding me, this party is totally ruined. Emily is never going to leave me in charge of anything ever again!”

  
She wasn’t yelling directly at Maddie, but the little girl had been so much abuse, that’s what she thought. She cowered in the corner. “No Mommy, I didn’t mean it, please don’t hurt me.”

  
The look of terror in her blue eyes snapped Carolina out of her mood. Tears welled in her eyes, she hadn’t wanted to scare her.

“No honey, I’m never going to hurt you, I was only angry.”

  
She knelt down by Maddie, she flinched and tried to pull closer to the wall. Carolina gently put her arms around her and pulled her close.

  
“Mommy, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to drop it.” She was bawling and couldn’t stop. She cried onto Carolina’s shoulder.

  
“It’s okay, it was an accident. I was only mad that the cake fell, I’m not mad at you. I love you sweetie.”

  
The tears fell down her cheeks as she held Maddie close to her. She felt like a failure as a Mother. She didn’t deserve this sweet little girl…  



	2. Chapter 2

Carolina flinched when she felt a pair of hands gently touch her shoulders. She looked up, Grey was kneeling over her and Maddie, her face set in a worried frown. Carolina didn’t even hear her come in. Grey handed her and Maddie some tissues.

  
Carolina looked around the kitchen, Tucker had shown up with David, who looked like he was going to cry. That was all she needed.

“Aunt ‘Lina, what’s wrong. Are you okay?”

  
She quickly wiped away her tears and put on a reassuring smile for the three year old. “Of course I’m okay, we just had a little problem with the cake.” He didn’t look too convinced.

  
Grey wiped away Maddie’s tears. “It’s alright honey, no one’s mad at you. Your little guests are all arriving, how about you and David go out and meet them.”

  
Maddie started crying again. “But I ruined my party, Mommy said so.”

  
Grey looked questionably at Carolina as her face turned bright red.

“No, that’s not how I meant it, I was exaggerating…” Carolina faltered with what to tell Maddie. Luckily, Wash had her back.

  
“Maddie, your birthday party is not ruined. I sent a text to Donut and explained what happened. He’ll be bringing another cake by when he comes over later.” Maddie stopped crying. “So you see, everything’s fine.”

  
“Really?”

  
He smiled at her and took her hand. “Of course it is. You and David go out and greet your guests.” He guided both kids towards the door. The kitchen got very quiet.

  
Tucker knew how to fix that. “Wow, I don’t think I’d ever seen the mighty Carolina cry before. Guess you really are human after all.” He was the only one who chuckled at his joke.

  
Carolina’s bright green eyes lit up with anger. “If you don’t get out of my face Tucker, I’ll make you cry.” She balled her right hand into a fist.

  
He flinched and back away. “Yeah, it’s the same old Carolina.”

  
Wash came to her defense. “Go outside and help Chloe watch the kids.”

Tucker knew the tone in his voice very well, he knew he would be sleeping on the couch tonight.

  
“Hey, it was only a joke. St least I snapped her out of her bad mood.”

Carolina acted like she was going to step toward him. That was all it took. He darted out the back door before she could hit him.

  
She went to counter and pretended to be interested in chopping up some onions.

Again, Grey put her hand on her shoulder. “Maddie still has some PTSD over her old life. You seen how she was with night terrors. She’s trying to forget it, but sometimes it gets triggered. You didn’t do anything wrong, you’re a good Mom to her.”

  
Carolina shrugged and tried not to sniffle, the damn tears were coming back. “Thanks Em, I don’t feel like I am, but it’s nice to hear it.” She went back to the onions.

  
Grey exchanged a look with Wash. He nodded, he knew how to help her. Grey made up an excuse to leave. “I’m going to the burgers started, you two can finish up in here.” She slipped out the door.

  
“You know ‘Lina, Chloe was the same way when Tucker and I adopted her. Her Mom wasn’t nearly as evil as Maddie’s Father was. So I say Maddie’s doing pretty well. This is a big change for both of you, believe me I know what that’s like. I got the hang of parenthood and so will you. For once in your life, just be patient.”

  
She looked over at him. He had a big dorky grin on his face. He knew it always put Carolina in a good mood. He was right, she almost smiled. That was a good sign.

  
She elbowed his shoulder when she walked past. “So that means, since I was obviously the best Freelancer, I could become the best Mom.” Her confident, cocky tone was back.

  
Wash pretended to think about it. “Sure, why not? You’ll be the best Mom ever, of all time.”

  
She finally smiled. Wash didn’t have to worry, Carolina would do just fine.

Later that night, Carolina double checked that the doors were locked up. Grey had a habit of forgetting and practically leaving them wide open.

She saw the streaks of lightening and heard a distant rumble of thunder. As humid as it had been today, they’d be in for a nasty thunderstorm.

  
Grey heard it from the bedroom. She shivered as she closed the window. Carolina looked at her as she got ready for bed. “It’s not raining yet, don’t you want to listen to the thunder?”

  
“No way, I always hated thunderstorms when I was a kid, I still do a little bit. I hope Maddie sleeps through it, she’s terrified of storms.”

  
Carolina nodded as she slipped under the covers. “Oh yeah, she had a busy day.”  
She kissed Grey goodnight after she turned out the lights. The darkened room filled with the flashes of lightening. The storm was getting closer.

Grey snuggled in closer to her. Carolina had to hold back a smile, she couldn’t believe Grey was still afraid of storms. She wrapped her arm protectively around her wife and held her close.

  
There was an especially loud crack of thunder, both Grey and Carolina jumped. Maddie screamed and ran in the room yelling “Momma Momma, don’t let the thunder get me.”

  
She jumped up on the bed, and settled herself right in the middle between her Mothers. She trembled with fear as she tried to hide her eyes from the lightening.

Grey wrapped her arms around her and tried to soothe her.  
“It’s okay Maddie, the storm’s outside. You’re safe here in here with us.” She motioned to Carolina. “Your Mommy’s here to protect both of us.”

  
Maddie looked affectionately up at Carolina. “Mommy will always protect me?” She seemed to have forgotten about the incident with the cake. Carolina was so relieved.

  
She gently stroked back her blond curls. “Of course I will. No thunderstorm is going to hurt you with me here.”

  
Maddie smiled, and despite the storm that was still raging outside, she fell asleep. Carolina cuddled up closer to her and tried to fall asleep herself. Maybe Wash was right, she really could handle being a Mom.

At three a.m., the ringing of the telephone shattered the quiet. Grey instinctively reached for the phone. She was so used to the emergency calls in the middle of the night. Still half asleep, she listened to the caller.

  
Through the years, she’d seen every kind of injury and illness imaginable, and even war. Nothing could phase her. But every once in a while, she got that one case that clearly disturbed her. This call was it, she sat straight up in bed.

  
“Oh god, don’t worry, I’ll be right down.”

She slammed down the phone and grabbed the first clothes she could find. Carolina was used to her manic episodes by now, but this was crazy even for her.

  
“Em, what’s wrong?”

  
“Emergency at the ER. A little baby had a terrible accident. Her distraught mother brought her in. She’s already flatlined once, they need me down there.”

  
“Oh, that’s horrible.”

  
“Can you watch Maddie for me?”

  
“Sure, she’s still asleep. I’ll let her know where you are when she wakes up.”

  
“Thanks babe.” She gave Carolina a quick kiss.

  
She looked for a second at her sleeping daughter. She looked so sweet and angelic, Grey felt so blessed that she was healthy and happy now. She couldn’t imagine the pain that the poor baby’s mother must be feeling right now.

  
She only hoped that she could save the baby.

  
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

Grey went rushing into the hospital room. “Dr. Grey, thank goodness. We’re losing her!”

  
A little baby’s small form lay so still on the examining table. Grey’s new assistant, Rachael, was on her way to becoming a fine doctor. She already earned Grey’s approval, that wasn’t easy to do. But what she was lacked was Grey’s constant optimism, she never believed any patient was beyond saving.

  
She gently pushed Rachael out of the way and started CPR. Within seconds, she had the tiny baby breathing again, but she was struggling to take breaths.

This could mean internal injuries, possibly broken ribs. Just looking at the baby’s face, Grey could tell she had been through major trauma.

  
Her face was bruised, she had a black eye that was almost swelled shut. The red imprints on her face looked like she was slapped. Grey doubted that this was any accident.

  
“What all do we know about this child?”

  
“Her name’s Allison Ferguson, she’s four months old. Her mother, Nicole, brought her in around 3am. She claims she fell out of her crib.”

  
Just as Grey thought, the story didn’t sound right. “Is the mom still here?”

  
Rachael nodded. “Yes, she’s waiting to see Allison.”

  
“Don’t let her leave, when I get her stable, I need to check with President Kimball and see about having the case investigated. Right now, I’m just worried about saving her life.”

  
Allison’s breathing still wasn’t consistent, so Grey had to insert a breathing tube. Allison didn’t like it all, for as weak and as badly hurt as she was, she tried to squirm away from it.

  
Grey smiled tenderly at her. “My goodness, you are a fighter, aren’t you? That’s a good thing sweet heart, you’re really going to need that spunk.” Grey noticed her wild, reddish-blond hair, it was appropriate.

  
Within half an hour, the poor baby was hooked up to monitors for her heart rate and temperature. By tomorrow, she would have a feeding tube installed if she was strong enough to handle it.

  
Allison’s good eye looked up at Dr. Grey, showing how much pain she was in and begging the doctor to help her. She looked terrified of all the machines.

  
Grey’s eyes filled with tears, who would hurt an innocent baby like this? When she was satisfied that the baby was stable, she would confront the mother, but until then, she wouldn’t leave Allison alone.

  
She pulled up a chair and gently held the baby’s hand. “It’s okay sweetie pie, I’m not going to leave you. You rest up, soon you’ll be feeling all better.” After a little while, Allison closed her eyes and appeared to be sleeping.

  
Grey called Rachael in. “Come and sit with her for me, I need to interview the mother. I need to know what happened so I can treat her appropriately.”

  
“Are we going to use any CAT scans or ultrasounds to check?”

  
“Not until she’s more stable. She’s so young, I don’t want to traumatize her even more.”

  
Grey found the mother in the waiting room. She had a tissue in her hand and was crying what appeared to be real tears, but looks could be deceiving.

  
“Mrs. Ferguson?”

  
She jumped up from her seat. “Yes, how’s Allie, is she okay?” Her blond, wavy hair was a mess and her big, blue eyes were rimmed red from crying.

  
“For the time being. She’s been hurt very badly, she flatlined on us twice already.”

  
Nicole flinched and turned pale when she heard that. “When can I see her?” She tried to go in the direction of her daughter’s room.

  
Grey held up her hand to stop her. “No, not yet. I need some info first. How in the world did she get hurt?”

  
“She fell out of her crib, it was a horrible freak accident.” Her eyes were wide eyed with fake innocence. Grey could sense the lie a mile away.

  
“Uh-huh. Your daughter’s four months old, unless you didn’t latch the crib properly, there’s no way she could fall out of the crib.”

  
Nicole faltered. “Uh…I meant that I was lifting her out of the crib. It was dark in the room. It was late and I was so tired that I accidentally dropped her.”

  
Again, Grey knew it was a lie. “Allie is very young and a fall of any kind could hurt her. But the amount of injuries, internal and possibly neurologically, not to mention the fact that her face looks like she was beaten, doesn’t add up to a simple fall. So do you mind telling me a new version of the ‘truth’?”

  
Nicole hesitated, she looked down at the ground. “I would, but if I told the truth, my husband would come after me.”

  
Grey studied her face to see if this was another story or not. She seemed more genuine this time. “So, your husband beat the child?”

  
She nodded with tears streaming down her face. “She wouldn’t stop crying, all she does is cry. He shook her really hard to quiet her, then he started hitting her. I tried to stop him, but he shoved me away. When he left, I called for an ambulance, I tried to help her.”

  
Grey let out a deep breath. Now it made sense, if Allie had shaken baby syndrome, she could be in for some long term problems. She may not even survive.

  
“For now, I won’t hold you personally responsible. I will call up President Kimball to see what actions will be taken to you and your husband. It’s best to not go anywhere.”

  
“Oh no, I’m staying here with my daughter.”

  
“You are not going anywhere near her until your story checks out.” She opened her mouth to object, the no-nonsense look on Grey’s face shut her up.

  
“Yes ma’am, I’ll wait out here.”

  
Grey made a mental note to call Carolina in a little while to say she won’t be home anytime soon. She wouldn’t be able to leave the baby alone. She hoped Carolina could drop Maddie off at daycare before her morning nursing shift started.

  
She excused Rachael and got settled back on her chair. For now, the best thing for Allie was to rest. She would worry about exams and scans in the morning. She carefully tucked Allie in with a light blanket, and planned to watch over her for the rest of the night.

  
Allie opened her unswollen eye, Grey couldn’t tell in the dim light if it was blue or green, maybe it was both. The thought of the baby having red hair and turquoise eyes made her think of Carolina. Allie definitely had her red headed spirit.

  
At least she didn’t seem to be in as much pain. She even allowed Dr. Grey a tiny smile, before falling back to sleep. Grey couldn’t help but miss being with her own family as she leaned back in the uncomfortable chair.

  
She hoped they were having a better morning than she was.


	4. Chapter 4

All through the night, Grey watched over Allie. She slept until almost 5 am, then Grey got worried. With ice compresses, she got the swelling on Allie’s face down a lot. Her black eye was still swollen, but now she could see out of it.

  
Grey was concerned when she started getting fidgety. She tried to cry, but with the injuries to her ribs, just breathing was difficult. Even with all the bruising, her skin had a bluish tint to it.

Grey gently touched her face so she could check her pupils. Allie threw up, dropped her head back and lay so still.

  
“Alrightee there, sweetie pie, I’m sorry, but you’re going in for the CT scan.” She called to Rachael to start the machine while she cleaned up the baby.

  
Grey gently laid her on a soft blanket so the machine could do a quick scan. Though Allie was lethargic, she still kicked and made cries of protest. The entire scan was finished before Allie could hurt herself. Grey was right by her side and cradled her in her arms.

  
“My goodness, you are a tough little kiddo, aren’t you?”

  
She spoke in high pitched baby talk the whole way back to Allie’s room. The baby looked up her with her eyebrows furrowed. She was trying to figure out what in the world her doctor was saying to her.

  
As Grey returned her to the crib, she finally got the idea. She gave Grey a little giggle for her efforts.

  
“There we go, I knew I’d get a smile out of you sooner or later. Poor kid, I don’t think either of your parents gave you much attention, did they?”

  
Allie reached up, trying to touch Grey’s stethoscope. She reached down to kiss her cheek. “Don’t worry sweetie, you’ll get plenty of attention from me while I’m here.”

  
Rachael interrupted their bonding time. “Doctor, her scans came back. It doesn’t look very good.”

  
Grey went from laughing to looking worried. She put on a brave face for the baby as she tucked her in. “I’ll be right back sweetie pie. I’ll get you all fixed up.”

  
In her office, Grey looked with dismay at the results. “Yep, it’s just as I feared. There’s swelling and bleeding on her brain and she has not -quite fractured ribs. Damn that monster excuse for a father, I’d love to give him a lobotomy. Prep for surgery, I gotta fix this.”

  
Rachael had never performed surgery on a baby this young. “Will she be okay?”

  
Grey nodded slowly. “The swelling’s not severe, so she’ll recover from that. I only worry about any brain damage or long term psychiatric problems she may have because of this.”

  
She gave a little prayer before going to scrub up. This little girl needed a miracle.

By 7am, Allie’s surgery was over and she resting comfortably. She had sent her Mother home with the warning to not leave town.

  
Nicole still claimed her innocence, but Grey wasn’t too sure. Even if she never struck the baby, she had obviously neglected her. And let her be the target of her monster of a father. She was guilty in Grey’s mind.

  
While Allie was asleep, she figured she should call Carolina. She would be worried about her. She answered on the first ring.

  
“Morning babe, it looks like I’m not getting out of here anytime soon.”

  
Carolina sounded worried about her. “What’s going on?”

  
“Turns our that little baby didn’t suffer an accident. Her deadbeat father beat her up for crying too much. Her symptoms qualify her for shaken baby syndrome.”

  
“Oh no, the poor little thing. Was the father arrested for this?”

  
“No, not yet, the authorities are still trying to find him. The mother is trying to help, but I think she’s just as guilty as the dad is. Right now, it’s a bunch of dead ends.”

  
Carolina’s quick temper flared. “If I was still a Freelancer, I would have him dragged into custody by now.”

  
Carolina tried to not blame Grey for her early retirement. She willingly gave up her old life to spend time with her family, but sometimes she wished she was still out there beating up the bad guys.

  
Grey was too tired to argue. “Don’t start, look how many people you’ve helped with your nursing degree.”

  
“Alright, I know. What do you want me to tell Maddie? She thought you had the day off. She planned a big play date for you guys.”

  
“Oh crap, I forgot about that. Tell her I’m sorry, I really will try to spend time with her.”

  
“You have other doctors and the nurses. They can take turns sitting with her. You’ve got to be exhausted by now.”

  
Grey sighed deeply. “Yeah…but I don’t know. There’s something special about this baby. I really want to help her. She seems so sad, it’s like she’s waiting for her guardian angel to save her. She’s in recovery right now, so I can come home soon.”

  
“Good. I’ll drop Maddie off at daycare, you can pick her up on your way home.” She had the edge to her voice that meant her wife better listen to her.

  
“Yes ma’am, I will. Love ya babe.”

  
“Love you too.” When she hung up, she noticed that Maddie was awake. She looked and saw that her Mom wasn’t still beside her. She gave Carolina a sad look.

  
“Momma had to work, didn’t she? And you have to work too?”

  
Carolina felt bad. “Yes honey, I have a short shift for this morning. Your Mom got the call last night to help a hurt little baby.”

  
“How did it get hurt.”

  
“Her dad wasn’t very nice to her.” Carolina was careful not to set off any of Maddie’s PTSD triggers.

  
She looked even more sad. “It’s no fun to get hurt like that.” She cuddled closer to Carolina and laid her head against her arm.

  
She laid her cheek on the top of Maddie’s blond curls. She could relate.  
“It’s definitely not. My Dad wasn’t much better to me. He never struck me, but for the way he hurt my feelings, he may as well have.”

  
She shuddered over the memory of her parents. Both of them had higher agendas in their lives that didn’t include raising their daughter. Especially after her mother was killed, she grew up feeling unloved and unwanted.

  
She came back to the present. “Oh man, look at the time. I need to get ready for work and you need to get ready for daycare.”

  
Maddie thought about it. “Can I go play with Mira?”

  
“Sure, I’ll call Simmons, but I’m sure he won’t mind. Hurry up, I’ll get you some breakfast.”

  
Maddie waited for the right moment. “Can I have birthday cake for breakfast?”

  
She smiled so innocently, Carolina knew it was a con, but damned if she could say ‘no’ to that face. After losing her favorite playmate, she figured Maddie deserved something.

  
“Alright, it’s faster than arguing about it. Just do not tell your Mom.”

  
“Yay, you’re the best Mommy!”

  
Carolina had to smile. She knew she was tricked by a two year old, but at that moment it didn’t matter. She could totally get the hang of this ‘Mom’ thing.  



	5. Chapter 5

  
  
Several hours into her shift, finally Carolina could slip away to the nursery to visit Grey. She found her sitting in a chair, staring over a small form. Her head was down, Carolina wasn’t sure if she was sleeping.

  
She went up behind Grey and wrapped her arms around her. Grey was awake, but was out of it way more than usual. She jumped and looked up at her wife. She eyes were puffy and red from lack of sleep.

  
She laughed when she saw Carolina. “Oh man babe, you scared me!” Her laugh was way too loud.

  
Carolina gave her a wary look. “God, you look exhausted. How are you getting through this?”

  
Grey was brutally honest. “Caffeine, a ton of caffeine.” She giggled as if she were drunk.

  
She was naturally wired as it was, she didn’t need caffeine to be hyper. Carolina worried about her mental state on a regular basis, all of her friends did. Carolina backed away a few steps.

  
“Em, you can’t keep going on like this, you need a break.”

  
“No way, I’m fine. I got this…see?” She went to stand up, the room started spinning. She fell back down. “Okaaay…maybe I don’t got this. But I still can’t leave.”

  
“You’ve been here for almost ten hours after getting a few hours of sleep. Why can’t you leave?”

  
She motioned to Allie’s small, still form in the crib. “Because of her. She’s been in practically a coma since she came out of surgery. I’m really scared that she’ll never wake back up.” Tears flowed down her cheeks. “I hate losing any patients, I need to save her.”

  
“You can’t do her any good if you don’t help yourself first. How about if I sit with her? I left Maddie with Simmons, he can bring her over here and the two of you can spend some time together. Maddie would love that.”

  
Grey’s face was still set in it’s stubborn pose. She looked so much like Maddie did when she didn’t get her way. Slowly, she nodded. “Alright, I’ll do it for my daughter. I know you’ll protect little Allison.”

  
Carolina took in a deep breath, she felt like a cold electricity shot through her. “That name…that was my Mother’s name.”

  
All of a sudden, she taken back to when she was six years old, and was told that her Mother was never coming home. She almost forgot Grey was in the room. She shook off the memory and looked at the little baby.

  
Her heart went out to the poor little thing. She was connected to so many tubes and wires, it was hard to see her face. She looked like every breath was a painful struggle. Carolina wanted to hunt that father and hurt him as badly as he did to her.

  
She traded places with Grey and she gently held Allie’s limp hand. As soon as she did, she felt it move. It felt like Allie was trying to hold her hand. She got her hopes up.

  
“Em, did you see that? She was trying to move.”

  
“I don’t know babe, it may have been an involuntary reaction.”

  
“No…I felt her hand move.” Allie was completely still. “I guess it was my imagination.” Grey put her hand on Carolina’s shoulder.

  
“It’s okay babe, we’re both hoping for the best.”

  
Allie’s hand moved, she weakly held onto Carolina’s finger. She fought to open her eyes. She looked straight up at Carolina’s face and gave a small smile. Her eyes closed again, but she tightened her grip on Carolina , she didn’t want to let go.

  
Carolina gave her a big smile and gently stroked her cheek as she fell back to sleep. “Don’t worry honey, I won’t leave you. You’re safe.”

  
Grey was impressed. “Wow, I guess she really likes you. I think it’s safe for you to babysit her. I’m gonna see if her mother is around. I think she may like to know that Allie’s feeling better.”

  
Grey went out to the empty waiting room. “Hmm, the bitch has been hanging around all day, being a pain in the ass. So now where did she go?”

  
She didn’t mind talking to herself, she did it quite often. Her receptionist, Janet, gave Grey a strange look before continuing on with her typing.

  
Grey checked the ladies room. As soon as she opened the door, she saw Nicole standing over the sink. She had a rubber band wrapped around her upper arm. A syringe was in her hand, she looking around for a clear vein. She looked up at Grey, her eyes wide with fear.

  
In a flash, Grey grabbed the needle from her hand. “Are you kidding me? You wanna give me one reason to not stab you in the face with this needle? Your daughter is in intensive care, fighting for her life, and you’re in here doing this…?” She held the needle up distastefully with two fingers.

  
Tears spilled down Nicole’s face. “Please, I only needed a little bit to take the edge off. I’m so scared for Allie!” Her tears drowned out her lies.

  
“If you don’t have your daughter taken away because of abuse, you’ll certainly lose her for neglect. You clearly proved you only care about yourself.”

  
“No, you have no authority to take her away.”

  
“True, but President Kimball does. She’ll be down tomorrow morning to sign the arrest warrants for you and your husband. Plead your case to her, I don’t want to hear your crap anymore.”

  
She took the syringe to her office so she could dispose of it properly. She heard Maddie’s voice calling out from the waiting room.

  
“Momma Momma, I missed you!” Grey went out to see her. She had Simmons lagging behind her, trying to keep up with the hyper child.

  
Maddie ran to her arms and she picked her up and held her close. “Sorry I had to skip out on our play date. I had an emergency. After a rest up a little, I’ll give you a do over play date.”

  
“Yay! Can we have a tea party? I make really good tea.”

  
“Of course we can. I’d love to try it.” Maddie was all happy now. “Thanks for watching her Simmons.”

  
“No problem, she was a little sad about not seeing you, but Mira helped her through it. How’s the little baby doing?”

  
“She seems much better. She apparently likes Carolina. She woke up for her, so I hope the worst is behind her.”

  
“Can I take a peek at her? I’ll be really quiet.”

  
Grey nodded. “Sure, it’ll be fine.” She knew Simmons would be careful with Allie.

  
She put Maddie down. She didn’t think she should see the baby while she was hooked up to so many machines. She didn’t want Maddie more traumatized of life than she already was.

  
The ladies room door opened. A slurred voice called out. “Madeline! Hi, it’s Mom. You remember me?” Nicole was waving like crazy at her.

  
Maddie looked at her for a second. Her look of terror was like a deer frozen in headlights. She started shaking like crazy. She grabbed ahold of Grey’s waist and hid her face against her side. Her screaming cry broke Grey’s heart.

  
“Momma! Don’t give me back to her. I love you and Mommy, don’t give me away. She’s scary!”

  
It only took Grey a second to process what was really going on. Allie was Maddie’s baby sister. There was such a resemblance to the two, no wonder she bonded with Allie so quickly.

  
She wrapped her arms around her trembling daughter as she tried to comfort her. “No Maddie, you’re my baby, no one is going to take you away; ever.”

  
She silently vowed to protect both these kids no matter what it took.

  
  
  



	6. Chapter 6

Simmons leaned over to get a better look at the sleeping baby. “I can’t believe it, with that hair, she looks a little bit like Mira. She had to have a breathing tube for a few days after she was born too.”

  
Allie opened her turquoise eyes to look at him. She offered him a weak smile. He reached over to gently hold her other hand. She willingly clung to him.

  
His own three kids were so big so fast, he enjoyed being around a little baby again. He talked some nonsense baby talk to her, and she giggled and cooed at him.

  
Carolina was trying not to be sentimental here, but Simmons interacting with Allie was adorable. She found herself giving in and joining him. What a change from the badass Freelancer she once was.

  
Even Simmons was shocked. He still had a hard time talking to Carolina, she hadn’t mellowed out too much over the years. Now that Carolina seemed more ‘human’, he could make up a conversation.

  
“Wow, she’s really enjoying all this attention she’s getting.”

  
Carolina shook her head sadly. “It’s obvious she’s never gotten that much. She’s a really sweet kid, she deserves better parents that what she has.”

  
Simmons responded carefully. “You know, if both parents are guilty of the abuse, she’ll probably end up in foster care system. You and Emily are great with Maddie, you guys could take her…” He was too afraid to finish.

  
“No, no way!”

  
“You’re great with all the kids. Mira especially loves you. Why not…?” He saw the frown on her face deepen. “Or not, it’s your choice.” He stopped, he didn’t want to get hurt.

  
“I have no idea how to take care of a child this young. I can hardly handle a two year old. Drop it!”

  
He shut up awfully quick.

The door opened and closed with a bang. Doctor Grey stood just inside the door. She had Maddie crying in her arms. She looked like she was going to cry herself.

  
Carolina instantly jumped up to go to them. “Emily, Maddie, what’s wrong?” She wanted to hold them both. As soon as she let go of Allie’s hand, she tried to cry.

  
Grey was worried about Allie, she went into doctor mode. “No ‘Lina, don’t let her cry, we’ll come to you.”

  
When Maddie got close to Carolina, she grabbed ahold of her other hand. “Mommy Mommy, the bad lady is out there. Don’t let her get me!”

  
Carolina looked more confused. “What lady sweetheart? I won’t let anybody hurt you, you know that. Emily, what’s going on?” She was panicking.

  
Grey didn’t know what to tell her, so she figured she would be honest. “The mean lady she’s referring is to is that Nicole who’s been sitting out in the waiting room.” She lowered her voice to try to keep Maddie from hearing. “Nicole is Maddie’s birth mother too.”

  
Simmons tried to help. “How about if I take Maddie out for a minute so you two can talk?”

  
Grey looked thankful. “Yes, it’s best for her. This is going to be traumatizing.”

  
He reached over to take Maddie from Carolina. “Come on with me honey. I’ll get you a treat from the snack machine.”

  
Maddie’s tears were slowing down. “But what about the mean lady?”

  
“I’ll be there to protect you.”

  
“But you’re scared of girls.”

  
Simmons stammered. “Ugh…I am not!”

  
Carolina raised an eyebrow. Grey looked like she wanted to comment, but kept it to herself.

  
“Uncle Grif said you were.” Maddie was being so serious about it.

  
“I’m going to wring Grif’s neck later. What is he teaching you kids?” He reached out for her. “Come on Maddie.” She willingly went into his arms.

The quiet between Grey and Carolina was awkward. Simmons’ words were running through Carolina’s mind. It was more and more clear that she and Grey would at the least be fostering this baby. Carolina wasn’t sure she was ready for this. She didn’t know how to tell Grey.

  
She seemed to be able to read Carolina’s mind. “What are you thinking about?”

  
“I don’t know what to think. I just don’t think I can handle my almost non existent mothering skills and disappoint this poor kid.”

  
Grey knew how she felt. “You know, my first few days alone with Maddie was touch and go at first, but we got used to each other. I can tell you two already love each other. That’s the same way I felt with Maddie. That’s what’s important.”

  
Carolina shrugged. She had such a terrible childhood herself, that she didn’t make to make Maddie and Allie’s own terrible lives any worse. The tears welled in her eyes. She was too proud to let them fall.

  
Grey gently kept pushing the topic. She had to snap Carolina out of this mood. “I wanted to talk it over with you first whether we should tell Maddie about her sister.”

  
“It’s your daughter, it’s your call.”

  
Grey huffed. “She’s our daughter, that’s what you need to keep in mind. She loves you as much as she loves me. You are a great mother to her whether you feel like it or not. You would be a great mother to this little baby too.”

  
Carolina looked up at her in surprise. “So we will be keeping her?” She didn’t feel too terrible about that decision.

  
Grey faltered, she hadn’t really considered it herself, it’s just where her mind flipped to. “Maaaybeee…?”

  
Her flighty attitude got a little smile from Carolina. It had taken some time, but she got used to her home life being a little more than chaotic with Emily Grey around.

  
Little Allie started raising her hands up towards Carolina, she wanted to be held. Carolina wasn’t sure how she could while Allie was connected to all these machines. She felt so bad for the baby.

  
“Em, is there any way to hold her?”

  
Grey checked out how far the oxygen tube would reach. “Since she’s feeling a lot better, we can get rid of all these except the oxygen. Her breathing is still a little shaky. If you’re careful, I think I can get her over to you.”

  
She gently placed the baby in Carolina’s arms. Allie looked up at Carolina so adoringly, that Grey got teary eyed. She definitely picked who she wanted her mother to be. Grey silently kept her fingers crossed that Kimball awarded them custody of her. She didn’t want to get her hopes up.

  
Simmons came back to the room with Maddie. Her first instincts was to go running to her Mothers. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Carolina holding the baby. She suddenly turned shy and tried to hide behind Simmons’ leg.

  
Grey gave her a big smile and tried to bring her closer to the baby. “Maddie, we have good news. This is your baby sister Allison. She may be staying with us while she recovers. Isn’t that great news?”

  
Maddie looked wide eyed at Allison, she couldn’t say anything. Grey and Carolina were her Mothers, not this small invader’s.

  
She buried her face against Grey’s side and cried her eyes out. She had been through so much trauma in her life already, she couldn’t handle this.

  
She was so scared she was going to lose her Moms…


	7. Chapter 7

Grey thought it was best to take Maddie home. She clung to her Mother and wouldn’t let go. Her crying was upsetting Allie, she was on the verge of crying herself. Her bruised ribs weren’t ready to take anything strenuous like crying.

  
Simmons quietly excused himself out the door, so Grey felt that was her cue to leave also. “‘Lina, you’re sure you’re okay here alone tonight?”

  
“Sure, I don’t the trust the baby with anyone else. If that deadbeat Dad wanted to get revenge, I’ll be here waiting for him.” She tried to give an encouraging smile. She didn’t like being separated from Grey and Maddie like this.

  
She gave Maddie a kiss on the cheek. “You be good for your Mom. I’ll see you tomorrow. Love you honey.”

  
Maddie calmed down enough to give her a hug. “Love you Mommy.” She glimpsed down briefly at the baby. She felt like this was the invader here to take her Moms away from her. She quickly looked away as her tears started again.

  
  
When Grey got Maddie into the house, right away, she knew they should both start off with a nap. Grey was exhausted and needed some sleep. She changed Maddie into her favorite pajamas, pink with a unicorn print.

  
She clung to her Mother, still crying out. “Don’t leave me Momma.”

  
As Grey tucked her into her bed, she gently soothed her. “I’m right here baby, I won’t leave you.” She tucked the covers securely around her.

  
Maddie’s crying calmed down to a sniffle. She looked so sad, it broke Grey’s heart. She wanted Maddie to like her sister. This was going all wrong from how she planned.

  
“I’m sorry we just kinda threw the news about your new sister on you like that. I only figured it out today myself. This was such a busy day, I think a nice nap time will do us both some good, don’t you?”

  
She just shrugged and kept looking miserable.

  
Grey wouldn’t give up in her. “When we wake up, we can have that tea party you wanted to have. Now that would be fun.”

  
“Yeah, I guess so.” She kept her hand tightly clenched around Grey’s hand. She was too scared to let go. She lost one family already, she couldn’t bear to lose the Mothers that she loved so much.

“Momma, will you read to me?”

  
“Of course I will, any requests?” Maddie shook her head. “Okaaay…” She rummaged through the book shelf. “How about The Three Little Pigs?” She made a big production out of the finding the book to make Maddie smile.

  
Maddie wanted to smile for her, but she couldn’t. She merely nodded, her blue eyes looking so sad. Grey gently squished her cheek. This was a problem that needed fixing and fortunately, Grey was the best doctor on the planet.

  
She read through the story for Maddie while changing her voice for each of the characters. Her high falsetto tone for the three pigs made Maddie cringe, but she got a smile from her. Her deep gruff for the wolf’s voice, won Maddie over. Soon she was giggling and playing along with her Mom.

  
At the end of the story, Grey tickled her and gave her a bunch of kisses. She was so relieved to see Maddie looking happy again. This was exactly what Maddie needed, to know that her Mom still loved her.

  
When Maddie could stop laughing, she reached up to Grey for a hug. “Momma, don’t leave me.”

  
Grey gave her a big hug. “Sure, I’ll nap right here with you.”

  
Maddie looked at her more seriously. “Momma, don’t ever leave me.” She big, blue eyes pleaded with her.

  
Grey stroked back her wavy, blond hair. “No way, I’m here with you forever and ever. Now go to sleep.”

  
Maddie looked satisfied with that. “‘Kay.” She closed her eyes and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Later that day, Grey woke with a start. Someone was tugging at her arm. She tried to get her tired eyes to focus. Maddie was jumping up and down on the bed while tugging at her sleeve.

  
“Wake up Momma, it’s tea party time!”

  
Grey groaned as she tried to wake up. She could have used a few more hours of sleep, but Maddie was more important. “Okay honey, I’m up. Get your tea set up, I’ll be right there.”

  
Grey sat around Maddie’s small table, pretending to drink tea and handling small, plastic cookies while Maddie chattered on about everything and nothing in particular. Grey felt herself zoning out. She had to snap out of it, this was important to Maddie.

  
Out of nowhere, Maddie asked a serious question. “Why does Mommy have to protect the baby?”

  
“Your father hurt her very badly and he’s in a lot of trouble for hurting both of you. We don’t want him to come after her again for revenge.”

  
She looked scared, her voice was really tinny. “The bad man will come after me?” Her bottom lip quivered.

  
“No honey, you’re safe here with me. Your parents gave up custody on you, you’re my baby now. He can’t get you.” She had an evil genius gleam in her eyes. “Especially after how bad I’ll torture him if he tried.”

  
She gave a small, relieved smile. She heard stories of how her Mom used surgical tools to torture enemies back when there was a big war going on, but Maddie never believed it. Her Mom was the nicest person in the world. At least to her.

  
The phone rang, interrupting their play time. Grey saw it was Carolina, she answered on the second ring. “Hi babe, we miss you.”

  
“Hi Em, this is a heads up, Kimball is going to be coming by your office in the morning. She wants to start writing out that idiot’s arrest warrant as soon as possible. She would like both of us there.”

  
“That’s no problem. I’ll see if Grif and Simmons will watch Maddie. Do you think Wash or Tucker could sit with the baby? Both of them are naturals with kids, I’m sure she’ll take right to them.”

  
“I’ll call Wash, I’m sure he won’t mind.” Carolina quietly sighed. “Allie’s a sweetheart and everything, but I really miss you and Maddie.”

  
“At the rate Allie’s recovering, she could come home in a few days. I can make a little hospital room here for her and she can recover more comfortably. We’ll be real parents to her, I can’t wait.”

  
“Me either. Goodnight Em.”

  
“‘Night babe.” She reluctantly hung up.

  
Maddie listened to the conversation. It was worse than she thought. Her eyes filled with tears. The bad man would be after her again, and she would lose her Mothers when Allie moved in.

  
She spent the first year of her life feeling like nobody wanted her, now she knew it was true.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning, Grey accidentally overslept and had to run around like a maniac to make up for it. Maddie wasn’t making things any easier. She was so cranky and whiny, it was a change from her usual sunny personality.

  
Grey put her breakfast of yogurt and fruit in front of her, she pushed it away. “I don’t wanna eat. I don’t want you to go, I want Mommy!”

  
Grey sighed, she had heard this all morning. “I know I know, I miss Mommy too. She’ll be home in a little bit. I’ll be staying with the baby for a while to give her a break.”

  
Maddie made a face. She didn’t want to hear about the baby that was taking her place.

  
Grey gave up and snatched her bowl away from her. “Hurry up, we’re so late as it is. You’re going to have a lot of fun playing with Mira and Jake. You won’t even be missing us.”

  
Maddie didn’t look too convinced. She let her Mom tie her shoes then they both rushed out the door.

When Maddie got to the Grif-Simmons house, she wasn’t feeling much better.

“Hi Maddie!” Simmons reached for her, but she clung to her Mom and wouldn’t let go. That was odd, Maddie loved Simmons almost as much as she did her Mothers.

  
Grey frowned at her behavior. “Goodness Maddie, what’s gotten into you? I guess this is what they mean the ‘terrible twos’” She had to practically pry her loose.

  
“No Momma, don’t go. I don’t feel good.”

  
Simmons struggled to hold the squirming toddler. “Don’t worry, I have a whole medicine cabinet with any medicine you may need. I’m used to Mira catching colds all the time. I’ll take care of you.”

  
He tried to feel her forehead, but she jerked away from him. She reached for her Mom, she wasn’t giving up.

  
Grey hesitated, she really hated to leave, but she had to. Plus, she couldn’t give into every one of her temper tantrums. Simmons understood, Mira was five and still acted like this.

  
“It’s best to just leave quickly. We’ll take good care of her.”

  
She nodded. “You’ll be fine sweetie, your Mommy will be here later to pick you up. Ta-ta.” She slipped out the back door.

  
Maddie struggled her way out of Simmons’ arms. She flounced on the couch and softly cried.

  
“Maddie, what’s wrong? Are you jealous of the new baby?” He gone through a similar incident with Dex when he and Grif brought the twins home for the first time. He got over it and Simmons was sure Maddie would too.

  
Just the mention of the baby made Maddie cry harder.

  
Jake and Mira heard Maddie crying from their bedroom. They stood in the living room doorway looking all concerned. They had come to think of Maddie as a little sister.

  
Jake looked worried. He was always had a sweet, sensitive personality. He looked at Simmons for an explanation. “Daddy, what’s wrong with Maddie?”

  
“Her Moms are bringing home a baby girl to foster and Maddie’s not too thrilled about it.”

  
Mira tried to help, she sat beside Maddie. “Wow, that’s really cool Maddie. I wish I had a little sister.” She looked up at Simmons.

  
He shook his head. “No way!”

  
Mira looked disappointed. “Let’s go outside and play. You’ll feel better then.” She tried to pull Maddie’s arm. She refused to move. She shook her head sadly.

  
Jake took a try. “Hey Maddie, I just learned a new magic trick. I’ll show it to you first before anyone else.”

  
Any other time, that would work. Maddie loved his magic tricks, she was mesmerized every time. Jake like using her for his assistant. She was much more patient than Mira was.

  
The twins gathered around Maddie, it was stressing her out. Simmons had to intervene. He shooed the twins in the direction of the door.

  
“She’s not feeling too well right now. You two go out and play, maybe she’ll be able to join you later.”

  
He sat beside her on the couch.“You know something Maddie? Dex was jealous of the twins when we first brought them home. He got over in no time, and he loves having a little brother and sister. You’ll get used to your little sister too.”

  
She looked up at him with her sad eyes. She looked like she wanted to tell him something, but she still had issues trying the right words to discuss her feelings. She gave up trying.

  
Simmons sat beside her and tried to encourage her. “Come on honey, what do you need to tell me? You can tell me anything, you know that.”

  
Grif passed by the living room. He was on his way to the kitchen on a snack run for the video game marathon he and Dex were having.

  
He saw Maddie’s tears and actually gave up junk food to come and check up on her. Simmons was amazed, Grif never passed on a meal. Damned if he would ever do that for him.

  
Grif frowned when he got a better look at her tear stained face. “What’s the matter with the little kiddo?”

  
Maddie couldn’t answer, she hid her face against the couch. Simmons helped her out. “She’s not having a good day.” He lowered his voice. “It’s about her sister, she’s not taking to the idea.”

  
Grif knelt in closer to her. “Why don’t you like your sister?”

  
Maddie just shrugged, she didn’t feel like talking to him. He sat on the other side of her. “Don’t play shy, you’re never quiet with me. We’re buddies, tell me what’s wrong and maybe I can help.”

  
Maddie looked up at him. Maybe she really could tell Uncle Grif, he never judged her. She moved in closer to him.

In a tinny voice she told him her problem. “My Mommies are bringing home the new baby soon. When they do, they won’t want me no more.”

  
“Of course they’ll still want you. Why wouldn’t they?”

  
“My real parents got rid of me so they could keep the new baby, they even said so. Now it’s gonna happen again, and I love My Mommies.” She cried again.

  
“No honey, real parents don’t do that. We didn’t get of Dex for the twins, did we?”

  
He mentioned that as Dex went through on his own snack run to grab the bag of potato chips that were on the table. He looked up when he heard his name.

  
“Especially when he’s about to steal the chips that I already called dibs on. So, you wanna go to a new home, buddy?”

  
Dex made a face as he headed back to his room. “Way to be a good parent Dad. Maddie, don’t listen to anything he says.”

  
Maddie started laughing. Simmons had to admit that Grif made her forget her troubles. She looked up at Grif, she believed him. “My Mommies will still keep me?”

  
“Of course they will, they are your real parents now, not the jerks you were born to.”

  
“We all are your family now Maddie. Uncle Wash and Tucker love you too. You’re never going to be alone.”

  
“Listen to the nerd Maddie, he’s absolutely right. Do you feel better now?”

  
She stopped crying and her face brightened up. Grif hated to admit he was as attached to her as he was to own kids. He hated seeing any of them cry. He tried to act like he didn’t care about anything, but deep down, he did. A little too much.

  
“Yeah, Thanks Uncle Grif!”

  
“Anytime sweetie. Now I have a video game and chips to get back to.”

  
Simmons helped Maddie up. “Ready to go play with Jake and Mira now?”

  
“Yeah!” As she stepped out the back door, she stopped and turned around. “Uncle Simmons, what’s a nerd?”

  
He flinched, he hated Grif teaching the kids this behavior. He heard Grif laughing all the way to Dex’s bedroom. “Just never mind sweetie, that’s not important.”

  
“‘Kay.” She took off for the swings.

  
“Damn you Grif!” He yelled in his direction.

  
It didn’t do him any good. Grif was too busy shooting down aliens to care.   
  
  
  
  



	9. Chapter 9

Carolina made it through her first night alone with little Allie. She found out quickly that she had no idea how to change a baby’s diaper. The night nurse on duty was nice enough to show her how. Around three am, she had to change one on her own.

  
It would have been easier if Allie still wasn’t hooked up to her oxygen tube. Carolina tried the best she could. “Well little one, it’s a bit lopsided, but it should hold; I hope. Just don’t do anything else until the morning, this way I’ll have backup to help us.”

  
Allie cooed and smiled at her. It was like she understood. She laid her back in her crib. Carolina held her hand until she fell back to sleep. She tried to relax in the padded steel chair, but it was so uncomfortable.

  
When she woke up again, it was seven in the morning. Allie was waking up and greeted her with a big smile. “Good girl, you slept through the night.”

  
Allie reached for her and Carolina gladly cuddled her close. She was amazed what a sweet kid she was. How could anyone abuse her like that? Then she noticed she needed her diaper changed again.

  
Carolina groaned. “Oh Allison, couldn’t you have waited a little longer for that?” The baby laughed at her. “If I didn’t know any better girlie, I swear you did it purpose.”

  
An hour later, Carolina was still cuddling with the baby when she heard a soft knock on the door. She looked up in time to see Wash politely poke his head through the door. “It’s okay to come in ‘Lina?”

  
Her bright green lit up at the sound of his voice. “Of course you can. You’re just in time for visiting hours. Someone here is still awake.”

  
“Wow ‘Lina, you look good there holding a baby.”

  
She shot him a dirty look. “Shut up. I am proud though that I changed my first diaper.”

  
Wash looked at the lopsided job she did. “Yeah, looks a little crooked there.”

  
She laughed. “I know, I’m still practicing. I need your help.”

  
“Hmm, I can train you for a change, that’s so unreal.” He looked down at Allie and held her hand.”

  
Allie was sleepy, but she perked up when she heard Wash’s voice. He had a pink gift basket in his hand with a little pink balloon tied to it. “We picked up a few baby things and made her a get well gift basket. Chloe picked everything out for her.”

  
“Aww, that’s really sweet. Make sure you thank her for Emily and I.”

  
“Uhh, you’ll have the chance to thank her yourself. She wanted to come along…and David and Tucker came too. I’m sorry, they really wanted to see her, I couldn’t talk them out of it.”

  
Carolina flinched. “Is it a good idea for her to have this much company?”

  
“I’m not sure, trust me, I won’t let them stay long. I’ll be the one watching over her while you and Emily are busy.”

  
She looked confused. “Where are they at?”

  
“Out in the hallway, I wanted to make sure it was okay before I let them in. I’ll get them.”

  
Carolina placed the baby back in her crib. She wasn’t sure this was such a good idea. “You ready for all these visitors?” Allie smiled and cooed. She looked ready enough.

  
“Hey guys, come on…Tucker! Stop flirting with that nurse. Get in here and behave.”

  
Chloe came first, Carolina knew she be easy with the baby. It was David she worried about. As on cue, the three year old came running through the door. He was never a quiet child.

  
“Hi Aunt ‘Lina, Daddy’s gettin’ yelled at!”

  
Carolina laughed as she hugged him. She did miss these two kids. They were like her niece and nephew. “Yeah, I hear that. He totally deserves it.”

  
Carolina put her arm around Chloe as she went to talk to Allie. “Hi there baby, you’re so cute!” Allie was loving all the attention.

  
David came closer. “I wanna see her.” He pushed Chloe out of the way to get a better look. “Hi there, are you gonna be my new playmate?” He turned to Carolina. “When can I play with her Aunt ‘Lina?”

  
“You need to give her some time to feel better, but she’ll love playing with you when she gets older.”

  
He looked happy with that answer and went to touch her hand. He was being surprisingly easy with her. Allie held his hand and laughed. Carolina let out the deep breath she didn’t realize she was holding in.

These kids were going to get along just fine together. She didn’t know why she was worried, Chloe and David were great kids. Wash and Tucker did a great job raising them. That’s why she trusted them babysitting with Allie.

  
Wash came dragging Tucker in behind him. He looked agitated, Tucker looked guilty.

“Hey Wash, I wasn’t flirting, honest. I was only being friendly. Anyway, she was a blue eyed blond, she reminded me of you. You’re the only one I wanna flirt with.” He tried to slip him a kiss, but Wash dodged out of the way.

  
He flashed Wash the smile he used to get out of trouble with. It worked like it always did. Wash blushed like crazy and tried not to smile back. He wanted Tucker to think he was still in trouble.

“Go talk to the baby, that’s your IQ level right now.”

  
As soon as Tucker saw the baby, he forgot about his ticked off husband. He talked to Allie in nonsense baby talk. She loved every minute of it. Carolina was amazed that with everything she had been through, she still had a great personality.

  
Wash noticed that too. “I can’t believe anybody would willingly hurt a child, especially that one. She’s a great little kid. After Tucker and I had lost our first son, I would have given anything to get him back. Then there’s this monster, trying to kill two of his kids, I don’t get it.”

  
Carolina nodded sadly. “The biggest reason her Mother gave was that she cried too much. She’s a baby, what did they expect?” She couldn’t keep the disgust out of her voice.

  
“Oh lord, David had colic when he was a baby, he cried almost all the time until he was three months old. It does stress you out, but I never even came close to hitting him.”

  
“It’s funny, but unless she needs changed, fed, or just some attention, she hardly ever cries. She wasn’t happy when she was with her parents, Maddie showed how scared she was when she came face to face with her Mom.”

  
“I take it you and Emily and going to adopt her?”

  
Carolina shrugged. “It’s fostering for right now. Her Mother figure still has custody of her. That’s one reason we’re talking to Kimball today. I imagine we’ll get the option to adopt her, I think it’s best for the two sisters to stay together…as long as Maddie comes around to the idea.”

  
“Is she just jealous of a new baby?”

  
“Not exactly, I think she’s more scared of something. I think it’s too many memories coming back too fast. She’s still so young, I don’t think she’s fully recovered yet.”

  
“It takes time, she was badly abused until she was one, Allie may have been hurt more badly, but she’s a lot younger, she won’t remember any of it. You and Emily are doing a great job, both of them will be fine.”

  
He sounded so positive, but Carolina wished she felt it. She still had no idea what she doing, but she was getting better at it. She allowed herself a little relaxed smile as she watched Wash’s family bond with her new daughter.

  
Yeah, maybe she could do this after all.   
  
  



	10. Chapter 10

President Kimball showed up promptly at 9:00 am, just as she scheduled. Carolina confidently left Allie in the care of Wash, and wondered where in the world Grey was at. She was often scatterbrained, but was almost never late for something this important.

  
Kimball gave Carolina a welcoming smile. Carolina had been her best officer until she retired to spend more time with her new family.

Kimball missed working with her. “Carolina, it’s been so long, how are you enjoying your retirement?”

  
“Hello Vanessa. I miss all the action, but between Emily and Maddie, I’m never bored.”

  
“I can imagine.”

  
They were interrupted by Dr. Grey flying through the door with her arms full of files. “Sorry Sorry Sorry. I’m running a liiitle behind today. I had a few problems with the kiddo.”

  
Carolina looked concerned. “Is Maddie alright?”

  
“Oh yes, she’s fine, at least she will be. Grif and Simmons will take care of her. I think she has the symptoms of a jealousy bug over Allie. I’ll talk to her later, she’ll be fine.” There was a little worry in her bright violet eyes.

  
Carolina didn’t like the way she said that. They would both have to talk to Maddie about what was really bothering her. She didn’t want to interrupt the meeting, this was important for Allie’s future.

  
Grey passed over the files in her hand to Kimball to inspect. “These are Allison’s medical files that you asked to see.”

  
Kimball frowned as she looked at the x-rays. “What am I supposed to be seeing here?”

  
“These show her C.T. scans. The mass you see in the skull area was bleeding on the brain. This helps confirms it was Shaken baby syndrome. Infants aren’t born with very thick skulls and have weak neck muscles. When shaken like this, the brain has little protection and is damaged, like with what happened with Allison.”

  
Kimball’s frown deepened. “And how did the Mother say it happened?”

  
Grey’s voice couldn’t hide her disgust. “First, she told us she fell out of the crib, then she claimed she accidentally dropped her. Finally, she confessed that her husband became enraged because she wouldn’t stop crying and violently shook her.”

  
“Oh god, what’s wrong with some people? Did you document any further abuse?”

  
“Unfortunately yes. These pictures are from the night she was brought in. There are bruises and red slap marks all on her face. Her left eye was swollen shut. Her ribs were quite bruised, the swelling showed up on the C.T. scan as well. It hinders her breathing and she’s still on oxygen support.”

  
Kimball exhaled deeply as she read through the rest of the reports. She hated this part of the job, especially since a child was involved. “So, the Mother claims her innocence?”

  
Grey rolled her eyes dramatically. “Yes, I know she’s lying, but except for busting her with heroin in my hospital, I can’t prove it. That’s why I need you here.”

  
Kimball read on further. “Good lord, these are Maddie’s parents as well?”

  
“Yep, it was a surprise to me too. Maddie came face to face with her Mother. She screamed and begged me to protect her. That’s how I know Nicole’s lying. I don’t think she should have any connection to either of her daughters.”

  
At that moment Nicole decided to barge her way through the door. Her eyes were bloodshot, her face was drawn and her voice was shaky. It was obvious she was coming off a heroin high.

“Wait just a minute, that is my baby, and I’m taking her home today! You all have no right to keep her away from me.”

  
Carolina’s eyes burned with rage. She was content to choke Nicole out with her bare hands. Unfortunately Kimball wouldn’t let her. As Carolina rose from her chair, Kimball put her hand in her arm. Slowly, Carolina sat back down, but she kept a close eye on Nicole.

  
Kimball’s own eyes burned with rage. “Uh excuse me, this is a private meeting, you can’t just barge your way in here. And yes, I have the authority to take your daughter away from you permanently. If you disapprove of this, my former bodyguard here will be more than happy to make sure you leave the premises.”

  
Carolina gave Nicole an evil grin, she approved. All she needed was the sign from Kimball. Nicole’s face turned pure white and she completely changed her tone.

  
“Alright, I’m sorry. Can I at least plead my case?”

  
Kimball didn’t look sympathetic. “It’s not like I’ve heard enough already, but you have two minutes. Start explaining.”

  
“I love Allison, I would never hurt her. I’ve been nothing but a model Mother to her.”

  
Carolina made a face. “You’ve got to be kidding me, you call what happened to that poor baby motherly love?”

  
“I swear I didn’t do it.” The tears ran down her face.

  
“Why would you think you were a model mother? Maddie is terrified of you.”

  
Nicole scoffed. “That kid was always afraid of everything. There was something wrong with her, I knew from the time she was a little baby. I tried to help her. I put her up for adoption so my husband would stop beating on her for being such an idiot.”

  
Grey’s face turned bright red, Maddie was her baby. “Well Kimball, it looks like I’m getting a new cadaver for med students to work on.”

  
Nicole backed her way to the door.

Kimball had to intervene. “Emily, Cool it. You Mrs. Ferguson, can just leave.”

  
“No, I was out of line. I really can help you. My husband’s been hiding out, he knows he’ll be arrested. I know where he is and I’ll rat him out to get my daughter back.” She was pleading with her red rimmed, blue eyes.

  
Kimball looked suspicious. “Why would you rat your own husband out?”

  
“Don’t you think that he hurt me too, not just the kids? I couldn’t help my girls when I couldn’t even help myself. I’ve looking for a way out of the abuse, now I can.”

  
Kimball looked at Grey. She shrugged, it was worth a shot. “Alright, if you volunteer the information leading to William Ferguson’s arrest, I’ll allow you to serve community service over any jail time.”

  
“I want Allison back.”

  
“Unfortunately, I don’t see that happening. She’ll be in the foster care of Emily Grey and Carolina. There, she will be safe.”

  
“So either way, I lose her?”

  
“While she’s in foster care, you’ll have limited visitation every other week, if you agree to go to rehab.”

  
“No, that won’t work.” Nicole was being so whiny.

  
“That’s my offer, take it or leave it.”

  
Nicole sighed. “Okay, I’ll take it.”

  
“I’ll take down all the information.” She turned to Grey and Carolina. “Thank you for the help ladies. I’ll be in touch to keep you updated. When you bring the baby home, we can have a nice long visit.”

Walking back to Allie’s room, Grey was being so quiet, Carolina worried about her. She put her arm around her. “You doing okay there, Em?”

  
Grey burst out in tears. Now Carolina was concerned. Despite the fact that Carolina was the best solider the Freelancer program ever trained, Grey had the real strength to keep the new family going. Carolina needed her to be strong.

  
“‘Lina, are we doing the right thing? Before we got married, when I suggested eventually adopting another baby, you were against it. Now, Maddie’s not happy over the idea. I love you both too much to ruin your lives.”

  
Now Carolina had tears running down her face. “Em, I’ve changed since I married you and adopted Maddie. I’m really attached to Allie now. I want to keep her.”

  
Grey’s tears stopped. “You’re sure?”

  
Carolina smiled. “Definitely. I’ll talk to Maddie when I pick her up. I’ll bring her back here, and have her officially meet her sister. They’ll love each other.”

  
Grey got excited. “Aww, I gotta go tell Wash. I can’t wait!”

  
Worry washed over Carolina again. She hoped she was right.  



	11. Chapter 11

Carolina was worried as she went to the Grif-Simmons house to pick up Maddie. She needed to find the right words to help Maddie feel better about the new baby.

  
She heard the children screaming and laughing as soon as she got out of the car. She recognized Maddie’s distinct laugh, that was a good sign. Carolina relaxed a little as she poked her head through the backyard gate.

  
Simmons was sitting out on the deck, with a newspaper in his hand. He was watching as Jake and Mira took turns helping Maddie learn to use the sliding board. She had been afraid of it for so long, now she loved it.

  
Simmons looked up as Carolina made her presence known. “Hey ‘Lina. Looks who’s feeling better out there.”

  
Carolina gave a relieved smile. “I see that, thank goodness. Emily and I have some official news to tell Maddie, and I was worried how she would take it.”

  
“Are you guys adopting Allie?” He sounded so excited about it.

  
“We’re fostering her. The worthless mother will still have some custody, thankfully it’s very limited. We already love her, it’s only matter of time before we officially adopt her.”

  
Simmons noticed how Carolina’s normally critical green eyes glowed when she mentioned Allie. He knew she was now officially Allie’s mother.

  
“I’m so happy for you both. Grif and I had a talk with Maddie today. She was really upset, but she managed to talk about her problems. Now she seems fine.”

  
“Emily was scared we shouldn’t take in the baby if it upset her that much.”

  
Simmons got a little quiet. “It’s not exactly normal jealousy. She said her parents got rid of her because they were having the baby. She was so scared that you and Emily would do the same.”

  
She took in a deep breath. “That’s ridiculous…”

  
“Not to a traumatized two year old it isn’t.”

  
She let out her breath. “I’ll let Emily know, we’ll make Allie’s homecoming a big to do with Maddie. This way, she knows she’s included. I’ll be running her down so she can meet her sister.”

  
“She’s a good kid, you two are good parents, she’ll be fine.”

  
She got quiet. “Thanks Simmons, thanks for helping her.”

  
“Hey, I can’t credit for it. It was Grif that helped.” Carolina gave him a look. “Yeah, I know. Grif can surprise you sometimes.” That was how they’d stayed married for almost ten years.

  
After all the time that Carolina was in the yard, Maddie finally noticed her. “Mommy, I missed you!” She went running for Carolina and fell.

  
Mira helped her up and made sure she made it to Carolina.

“I missed you too, honey. Guess where we’re going?” She picked Maddie up in her arms.

  
Maddie looked excited. “Where?”

  
“Down to the hospital so you can officially meet your new sister. Your Mom is down there waiting for you.”

  
Sadness clouded over Maddie’s eyes, she looked down at the ground. “So you and Momma can get rid of me?”

  
Carolina cuddled her close. “No, we love you, you’re not going anywhere. We’re bringing her home with us so you can have a new playmate.”

  
Maddie didn’t look reassured. “But Momma’s mad at me.”

  
Carolina frowned. “Why is she mad at you?”

  
“Cause I was a bad girl today.” She looked up with her eyes filled with tears.

  
“Oh, you were? Yeah, I heard something about that.” She tried to hold back a laugh. “ Well, I’m sure if you apologize, she’ll forgive you.”

  
“Really?”

  
“Really, you want to meet Allie now?”

  
She didn’t look sure, but she nodded. “Yeah.”

When she reached Allie’s hospital room, what little enthusiasm Maddie had was gone. Dr. Grey was telling a story to Allie, it was Maddie’s favorite story about the Three Little Pigs.

  
Her bottom lip quivered, she really was being replaced. Carolina noticed her reaction. She put her hands on Maddie’s shoulders and gently guided her forward.

“It’s okay honey, go say hi to your sister.”

  
Dr. Grey looked up as Maddie came closer. She gave her the biggest smile. “Hi Maddie, you’re just in time for story time, any requests?”

  
She held her arms out to Maddie, but she hesitated a second. With a sob, she ran to her arms and grabbed tightly onto her Mom.

“Momma, don’t get rid of me for the baby. I won’t be bad no more.” She couldn’t stop crying.

  
Grey held her close as she soothed her. “You’re my baby Maddie. I’m never, ever, ever getting rid of you. And I know you were upset today, that’s why you acted up. It’s all okay.”

  
Maddie’s tears slowed down as she pulled away from Grey. “What if the baby doesn’t like me?”

  
Grey pretended to scoff. “Are you kidding? She’s gonna love ya. Come and say hi to Allie.”

  
She took Maddie’s hand and led her to the sleepy baby. Allie looked up, questioning who this new stranger was. She decided she liked Maddie. She gave a coo and smile to Maddie, who didn’t know what to think.

  
Grey gushed. “See, I knew she’d like you. Are you gonna be a good big sister to her?”

  
Maddie was still shy. “I guess so. I like her hair, it’s kinda like Mira’s. Hi Allie.”

  
A loud bang at the door disrupted the happy family moment. Nicole pushed her way through the door. She looked wild and enraged. It was obvious she had taken heroin. So much for her promise to get rehab for her daughter.

  
“I want my baby and I want her now. You two just can’t come in and take her away, it’s kidnapping. That’s not fair!”

  
Maddie whimpered in fear and backed all the way up to Allie’s crib. At the sound of her Mom’s voice, Allie started crying. Maddie moved closer to her, trying to protect from their Mother. She didn’t want Allie to get hurt anymore.

  
Carolina blocked Nicole from getting any closer to her girls. “You turn around and get out of this room, NOW!” She cracked her knuckles, she was ready for a fight. It had been too long.

  
“Aww, is the big Freelancer going to hit me? I’ll have you arrested for assault.”

  
Grey knew what to do. She gently pushed Carolina out of the way, so she was facing Nicole. “I got this babe.”

Carolina moved back to protect the girls. Grey could hold her own. She put an arm around Maddie, and tried to comfort Allie.

  
Nicole rolled her eyes. “Are you supposed to scare me?”

  
“No, I’m not scary at all. In fact, I used to be an accomplished opera singer, but I chose the medical field instead.”

  
Nicole looked confused, she wasn’t sure where this was going. Carolina wondered herself. She had always questioned Grey’s sanity, but in the end, she had always been sane.

  
“I still enjoy singing for my patients. It helps take their mind off the pain… or helps muffle the screams.” She got right up into Nicole’s face. She flinched and tried to back up. “Would you like me to sing a few bars?”

  
Nicole reached for the doorknob. “Uh…no, I’m good…” she flew out the door.

  
Grey turned to wink at Maddie and Carolina. “Hope it wasn’t something I said.” Maddie started giggling. Her Mom was too cool.

  
Carolina cradled Allie as Grey checked on Maddie. “Wow, look at you, you protected the baby. That’s a good job Maddie, you’re gonna be the bestest big sister ever.”

  
Maddie blushed and reached over to touch Allie’s hand. Allie gripped Maddie’s small hand and didn’t want to let go. Carolina was relieved, her daughters liked each other.

  
“Okay guys, story time is the Grey’s first official activity together as a full family. Maddie, what should it be?”

  
“Three Little Pigs again!”

  
“You got it.” She read through the story with her special voices at Maddie’s request. Little Allie struggled to stay awake for the story. Maddie and Carolina both laughed at her enthusiasm.

  
As Carolina sat back with her new daughter in her arms, she couldn’t help thinking this new family life was crazy, but they were her family.

  
  



	12. Chapter 12

Dr. Grey had a whole stack of picture books by Allie’s bedside to read to her girls. She started collecting them when she first adopted Maddie.

She wanted to encourage her at a young age to love books. Most of them were hand me downs from Simmons, he claimed it worked wonders with his kids.

  
Maddie was curled up in her lap, while Allie was half asleep in Carolina’s arm. Every time she finished one story, Maddie begged for another. Grey was having a proud Mom moment. Both girls seemed to forget all about Nicole’s invasion. She was happy they weren’t very traumatized.

  
Allie was ready for bed and Maddie was yawning. Grey tucked Allie into bed and turned to say goodnight to Maddie. “You need to go home and get some sleep. Tomorrow, I planned a busy day for us.”

  
“What is it Momma?”

  
“Allie’s feeling better to come home for the rest of her recovery, and we need to set up a nursery for her. As part of your big sister duties, I thought you’d like to help me pick out what she would like. Would you want to?”

  
Maddie perked up. “Wow, can I?”

  
“Sure, I made arrangements with Simmons’ Mother to come watch Allie. It’s going to be just the three us.”

  
Maddie looked happy. This helped encourage her that she wasn’t being passed over.

  
“What kind of decorating do you think she would like?”

  
Maddie thought. “I like pink princess decorating.”

  
Grey smiled, Maddie was a good con artist. She got her hint. “Yes, I know that honey. Do you think Allie would like that too?”

  
Maddie thought hard about that. “Nah, I think she would like it colorful and fun.”

  
Grey agreed with her. “Yeah, she has a lot spunk to her already. She’s gonna be a handful. That’s a good call, you’re being such a good big sister already.”

Maddie’s cheeks turned pink, she liked having a little sister…so far.

  
Maddie held onto Carolina’s hand as they walked out. “Momma was real funny to the mean lady.” She was still giggling over it.

  
Carolina chuckled herself. “She sure was. I don’t think we need to worry about her any time soon.

Later that night, Maddie was all tucked in for bed. “Mommy, will you read me a story?”

  
“You heard about a hundred of them at the hospital. Aren’t you tired of them?”

  
She shook her head dramatically. “Nuh-Uh, no way!”

  
Carolina groaned, it was degrading losing a battle of wills to a two year old. “Okay, which do you want?”

  
“Cinderella.” She was very definite.

  
Carolina grabbed the book from the shelf. “So, if I read this to you, you’ll go to sleep?”

  
“Uh-huh.” Her smile was angelic.

  
True to her word, Maddie was asleep before the end of the story. Carolina gave a sigh of relief, she needed some peace and quiet. She snapped on Maddie’s nightlight and closed her door halfway.

  
Carolina felt so drained. She was still adjusting to having kids, she was so used to it being quiet when she was living alone…come to think of it, the quiet was overrated. She loved her kids.

  
She curled up in bed with a book. She fell asleep before she even knew it. Her book was still in her hand. At 3 am, the quiet was shattered.

  
Maddie’s ear piercing scream scared Carolina awake. She couldn’t even remember where she was. She heard the second scream, she flew to Maddie’s room and switched on the light. Tears streamed down her face. She was terrified, she couldn’t stop shaking.

  
“Mommy Mommy, the bad man is here, don’t let him get me!”

  
Ugh, it was one of Maddie’s night terrors again. Carolina had to treat it like it was serious. “It’s okay honey, you know he can’t get you when I’m here.” She sat beside her in her bed. Maddie grabbed her and wouldn’t let go.

  
“No Mommy, he was in here. I could smell the smoke. It was the bad man!”

  
Carolina frowned. Maddie had nightmares about her abusive father a couple times a week. She had been doing better with them. Any other time, it would go away and Maddie was fine, but she kept tugging at Carolina’s pajama sleeve.

  
“Okay, how about I go check it out, and I’ll prove to you that he’s not here?” She must have had too much stress today.

  
“Don’t leave me!”

  
She picked her up and half heartedly checked under the bed and in her closet. “Nope, no bad man in here.” She tried to lay her back down. Maddie kept trying to squirm her way into Carolina’s arms. She wouldn’t give up.

  
“No, he was here, I smell the smoke.”

  
This was a new variation of the old night terrors. Carolina had a bad feeling something was really going on here. “What smoke? I don’t understand what you mean.”

  
Maddie held up her right arm. There were still faint scars from the burn marks from when she was a baby. “He hurt me, I could always smell the smoke before he hurt me .”

  
It finally dawned on Carolina. She remembered that Grey has shared some of Maddie’s abuse problems with her when they got married. Maddie still the scars from being burned with a lit cigar. That’s what she meant, she smelled the cigar smoke.

  
Now that she mentioned it, Carolina did smell faint cigar smoke. Her heart dropped, William must have realized the authorities were after him. That made him more dangerous. She didn’t want to scare Maddie anymore than she always was.

  
With Maddie still in her arms, she went to casually close the screened window. Something caught her attention, it was a crumpled cigar butt, directly under Maddie’s window. He knew where his daughter was.

  
She wished she had kept her trusty Magnum, she was used to having weapons on her at all times. With retiring from the Freelancer missions and having a two year old around, she felt it was safer to leave them in her old locker. Now she needed it.

  
Oh well, with all her training and martial arts skills, she herself was a walking weapon. She could crush him with her bare hands.

She just worried about Maddie, she was so young   
and helpless. She deserved to live a life where she knew she was loved and protected. She shouldn’t have to be afraid.

  
First thing in the morning, Carolina was going to President Kimball. Whether that arrest warrant was ready or not, Carolina herself was going after him. He had no right invading her family like this. She would die to protect Emily and her daughters if she had to.

  
With Maddie safely in her arms, she went to inspect every window and double checked each door. Every entrance was locked up tight. Maddie’s eyes never lost that terrified gleam to them. She felt safer with Carolina, but never stopped shaking.

  
Carolina made them a comfy spot on the couch and she tucked Maddie in an Afghan blanket that Grey decorated the couch with. “Let’s sleep here for the night, it’s cozier.”

  
“Stay with me Mommy?”

  
“Of course I will, I need the company too.” She rested her cheek against Maddie’s soft blond hair.

  
Maddie snuggled against her and was soon fast asleep. Carolina didn’t dare sleep, every little noise had her on edge. Her thoughts turned to Emily, she was alone in the hospital with Allie.

Carolina couldn’t call her with the risk of waking Maddie. At least the hospital had security cameras, that should keep her safe. She hoped William wouldn’t be that stupid…

  
God, morning couldn’t come fast enough.


	13. Chapter 13

Dr. Grey settled Allie down in her crib. She got out her trusty stethoscope. “Okay sweetie pie, let’s listen to those lungs.”

  
Allie was tired, it was easy to get her to lay still. She half heartedly reached up for the stethoscope as Grey listened to her chest. Her turquoise looked up in amazement as she tried to figure out what it was that her new mother was doing to her.

  
Grey smiled down at her. “You like the stethoscope? You may be a future doctor yet. Well sweetie, you breathing is sounding so much better. You wanna try it without the oxygen?”

  
She gently removed the tubes. Allie reacted a little, but she didn’t cry. She trusted her both new Moms, they wouldn’t hurt her like the old one would. She recovered quickly and gave a big yawn.

  
Grey tucked her in with her light pink baby blanket that Wash and Tucker got for her. Her tired eyes closed, she was ready for bed. Grey kissed her cheek.

“You’re such a good girl. Nighty night.”

  
Allie was soon fast asleep. Grey propped her feet up and tried to lounge the best she could in her stiff chair. Soon, she began dozing off as well.

  
It was after 3 am. The sound of glass shattering scared Grey awake. The window near Allie’s crib exploded. Glass flew everywhere. Allie started screaming.

Grey jumped up and grabbed ahold of the baby. She gave her a quick check over. She wasn’t hurt, just scared.

  
On the ground near her crib was a large rock. Someone purposely tried to break in. Allie kept screaming. Grey held her close, trying to comfort her, when she herself was terrified.

  
There was a knock on the door. Grey didn’t dare answer it. The familiar voice of her night security guard, Eric, called through the door. “Dr. Grey, are you and the baby alright in there?”

  
She was shaking so badly, she could hardly answer. “Yyy…Yes Eric, we’re fine. The window got broken.”

  
“Our cameras caught the form of a man running through the parking lot. He seemed to be headed off through the woods. We have some men trailing him and the police have been notified.”

  
“Allie’s screams must have startled him off.” She kissed the top of the baby’s head.

  
“It looks that way. I don’t think there’s any immediate threat, but my team is on guard for you. Do you need someone to stay with you?”

  
“No thank you, I appreciate all this. I’m going to be locked up in my office with the baby for the rest of the night. I’ll call my wife, we’ll be okay for tonight.”

  
“Alright, goodnight ma’am.”

  
She darted quickly into her office with Allie tightly in her arms. The hospital room wasn’t safe anymore. At least there were no windows in her office. There was only one door to watch guard over.

  
Allie was still crying, she seemed to know who the intruder was. “I take it that was your father, little one. I don’t blame you for not liking him. Don’t worry sweetie pie, I’m not gonna let him hurt you.”

  
She pulled out her phone at and called Carolina. She had to get the warning that William was stalking them.

Carolina answered her phone on the first ring. She didn’t want to Maddie up. The first thing she heard was Allie crying. She knew right away what was wrong.

  
“Em, are you two all right?” She couldn’t hold back her panic.

  
The stress of the incident got up Grey, she started crying. “Yes, we’re fine. William was here, he tried to break into the room. I think he was trying to get Allie.”

  
“He tried it here too. He knew which window was Maddie’s. This is so ridiculous, he doesn’t even want his kids. Are you in a safe place?”

  
“Yes, we’re locked away in my office. The security guards are keeping an eye out for him.”

  
Carolina scoffed, what could the security guards actually do if the caught him? “Stay there, I’m on my way. We have to stick together so we can guard the kids.”

  
Grey’s crying stopped, she was feeling better just hearing Carolina’s voice. “Okay, just be careful babe. I love you.”

  
“Love you too Em.” When she hung up, Maddie was looking up at her with big, scared eyes. “We have to run down to see your Mom and sister.” She gently moved her and picked her up.

  
“Is it the bad man?” She looked so sad.

  
Carolina had to be honest. “Yes honey, I’m afraid it is.”

  
She shuddered as she laid her head against Carolina’s shoulder. “He’s scary.”

  
“I know he is, that’s why we got to get to your Mom and sister.”

  
“Is Momma okay?” Maddie’s bottom lip quivered, she wanted her Mom.

  
“She will be honey, I promise.”

Carolina pounded on the office door. “Emily, it’s us, open up. Are you alright?”

  
Grey gave a huge sigh of relief. Allie perked up at the sound of Carolina’s voice. Her tears slowed down. Grey couldn’t unlock the door fast enough. With the baby in one arm, she threw her other around Carolina and Maddie and hugged them tight.

  
Maddie cried when she saw Grey, that made Allie start crying again. It was enough commotion to give Carolina a panic attack. She had to take charge here.

  
“Emily! I want to give you a hug, but first let me through the door. We have to get control of the kids.”

  
Grey moved back and Carolina set Maddie down. She ran to Grey and threw her arms around her waist and cried. “Momma, the bad man tried to get me!”

  
She put her arm around her. “Aww honey, you don’t need to be afraid. Your Mommy and I won’t let him get you or Allie.”

  
She still sniffled, but she looked a little more reassured. Allie reached for Carolina. In spite of her irritation, the sight of that little girl, help put Carolina in a better mood. Saving Maddie and Allie made all this stress worth it.

  
As she held her close, Carolina finally noticed the oxygen tube was gone. “Doesn’t she need the oxygen anymore?”

  
Grey smiled, she was so proud. “Nope, she’s breathing fine without it. And she doesn’t seem to have any brain trauma. Her vision appears to be perfect and she recognized your voice from behind a closed door. She’s on the road to recovery.”

  
Grey pulled some blankets out of the closet and laid them out on the floor for a safe bed for Allie. Both kids calmed down and were ready for bed. Allie fell asleep almost immediately. Without any encouragement, Maddie laid down beside her sister.

  
It brought tears to Grey’s eyes, she really wanted this family to come together and be happy. She tucked both kids in and gave an extra big hug to Maddie. “That’s my girl.”

  
Maddie blushed at the compliment. Allie laid her head on Maddie’s arm and was content to sleep like that. Maddie was super careful not to move and disturb her.

  
Carolina had collapsed on the small couch and watched the kids with interest. Her old Freelancer instincts kicked in, she knew what she had to do for her family.

  
Grey cuddled up beside her in the couch. She was still gushing over how well the kids were getting along. She laid her head against Carolina’s shoulder.

  
“Well, I don’t think we need to worry about those two.” She noticed how quiet her wife had gotten. She frowned as she looked at the faraway look in Carolina’s eyes. What was she plotting? “What are you thinking about?” She didn’t want to know the answer.

  
“He needs to be stopped, he can’t be allowed to harm innocent children and stalk families like this. I’m going to make him suffer like he did to his kids.”

  
At that moment, Carolina didn’t care what happened to herself, all she knew was she had to protect her family…  



	14. Chapter 14

Carolina woke with a start. She was cramped from sleeping on the couch. Grey was curled up in her arms, still fast asleep. Carolina was so stiff she doubted if she could move.

  
She immediately looked down to check the girls. They were both sound asleep, Allie was practically lying on Maddie. She had to smile over how cute they looked together.

Poor Maddie was going to be as stiff as Carolina was. She could barely get her arm free to check her watch. It was 8 am already.

  
Her movement woke Grey up. She yawned and stretched. Carolina was finally able to move a little. Grey rested her head back on Carolina’s arm.

  
"Morning babe." She gave her a kiss before glancing down at the kids. She whispered to risk not waking them. "Ohh, they are so adorable. It’s hard to believe Maddie didn’t like Allie at first."

  
A sudden knock disturbed the quiet. Despite the fact that her wife was still leaning on her, Carolina jumped up, suddenly wide awake. The night before made her paranoid, all of her old Freelancer instincts came flooding back. She was ready for a fight as she moved towards the door.

  
Grey was right behind her, her hands on Carolina’s back. "Easy there babe, if it was William, he certainly wouldn’t knock first. Keep it together."

  
She felt a little foolish, but old habits die hard. "Who is it?" She couldn’t keep the hostility out of her voice.

  
A startled woman’s voice called out. "It’s Meredith Simmons, I was supposed to watch Allison today."

  
Carolina let out the breath she was holding in. She forgot all about the baby shopping trip they were going on.  
Grey pushed past her and swung the door open and gave Meredith a friendly smile.

"Hieee, so glad to see you. Never mind my wife, we had a rough night last night."

  
She looked concerned. "Oh, I heard about that from the receptionist. The whole hospital is on guard. I told Dick to be on the lookout. I worry about my grand babies."

  
She looked nervously at Carolina as she moved out of her way so Meredith could get in the door. Carolina had to smile to herself. Simmons was so much like his mother. After all these years, he was still nervous around her.

  
Allie started fussing, and Carolina went to pick her up. She quieted down right away. Maddie rubbed her little eyes as she tried to wake up.

  
"Hi Gramma Simmons!" She ran to her. Meredith had taken over as all the kids honorary grandmother, not just her three actual ones. "Guess what? I’m a big sister now!" Maddie tugged on her sleeve to show her the baby.

  
"Are you now? That’s so exciting. Do you like having a sister?"

  
Maddie hesitated, she was an honest child. "Well…not at first. But we’re friends now."

  
Grey smiled proudly and put her hands on Maddie’s shoulders. "She’s the best big sister ever." Maddie looked happy.

  
Meredith wanted a better look at Allie, but she was still wary of Carolina, no matter how nice she tried to be. Meredith stood back, she wouldn’t come any closer.

  
Carolina gently handed her the baby, she trusted her. The woman was a saint with kids. "Here’s Allie."

  
Allie fussed a little, she wanted her mother. She looked at this stranger with her bright turquoise eyes, wondering who she was. She made one last attempt to reach for Carolina before deciding she liked this new person.

  
Meredith smiled warmly at her. "Well, I see you’re already your Mommy’s girl, you’re so sweet." She noticed all the bruises on her face. "Who in the world could hurt a precious little thing like you?"

  
Grey shook her sadly. "I don’t know what’s wrong with some people. It’s sad."

  
Carolina had been quiet all morning. Her mind was racing. "Don’t worry, I’ll stop him."

  
Grey shot her a look. "Babe, I don’t think Kimball will go along with that idea."

  
"I don’t care, he isn’t going to stop until I stop him. With or without Kimball’s permission."

  
Grey sighed. When Carolina got that look in her eyes, it was pointless to try arguing. "Alright, go tell her if that’s what you want. I’ll be ready with your bail money, just in case…"

  
She gave Grey an exasperated glare. "While you and Maddie go on your shopping trip, I’ll head down to Kimball’s office."

  
Maddie looked worried. "No Mommy, I don’t want you to leave. Don’t you wanna spend time with me? The bad man’s out there. Mommy don’t go." She burst out into tears. She had ahold of Carolina’s hand and wouldn’t let go. 

  
Carolina didn’t know how to make Maddie understand that she was doing this to keep her safe. "I do want to spend time with you, but I need to make sure you’re protected."

  
Maddie still wouldn’t let go. Grey had to practically pry her loose. "No honey, Mommy needs to go do this. Don’t you wanna help me to decorate the nursery for Allie?"

She gave her a pleading look that made her let go of Carolina.  
Maddie looked back at Carolina before giving up. "Okay Momma, I can help."

Carolina unintentionally slammed Kimball’s office door. She was in the zone, there was nothing that could hold her back. Kimball took one look at her determined face and knew something was up.

  
"Carolina, what’s wrong?"

  
"What’s the status on William Ferguson’s arrest warrant?"

  
Kimball frowned. "I should be hearing back from the judge either today or tomorrow."

  
"That’s not good enough, how about within the hour?" 

Kimball’s frown deepened. “That’s awfully short notice. I don’t think I could assign an agent to the case that quickly.”

“I already have an agent for you; me. I’m ready to go; right now if I have to. I’m the best agent you had, you know I can bring him to justice.”

Kimball exhaled slowly. “You know I can’t do that. You’re too personally involved in this case. Besides, you’re retired from the Freelancer program. In all good conscience, I can’t send you out on a mission.”

“This asshole has invaded my home to threaten my two little girls that he’s already beaten the hell out of. I spend every night hearing Maddie’s screams because of her abuse. I sat by Allie’s bedside as she fought for her life... hell yes, it’s personal!”

Kimball wanted to argue, but she knew Carolina was right. Even in retirement, she was the best agent Kimball ever had. She had seen that intense spark in Carolina’s eyes before, but not as much as now when she talked about protecting her kids. 

Kimball wouldn’t regret her decision. “Fine, I know better than to argue with you. You’ll find all your gear in your old locker. Somehow, I knew you wouldn’t stay retired. I’ll have the warrant ready in a few hours. Just do me one favor.”

“Sure, anything.”

“Get this son of a bitch for me.”

Carolina gave an evil grin as she cracked her knuckles. “Oh, I definitely plan on it.”

She left Kimball’s office feeling better than she had in a while. Soon, Maddie and Allie’s nightmare would be over.


	15. Chapter 15

Carolina opened up her old locker. When she officially retired from the UNSC, she never thought she would be using it again. She couldn’t believe all her gear was still here waiting for her.

  
She got an energy rush upon seeing the familiar cyan suit and Rouge helmet. There was also her trusty Magnum handgun. She felt strange not being weighed down by all the weapons, but in civilian life, they weren’t practical, especially with two small children around.

  
But these kids were why she needed the gear now. All she had to do now was to wait for the arrest warrant to be signed. She closed up the locker. She wondered if Grey and Maddie were finished baby shopping yet.

  
“Hey ‘Lina, it’s weird seeing you here.”

  
She looked up at Wash’s familiar voice and smiled. “It feels weird being back here.”

  
“What’s up, are you re-enlisting?” He sounded confused. He couldn’t picture Carolina willingly leaving her wife and kids.

  
“No, I have a one night only mission to catch Maddie and Allie’s deadbeat father figure.”

  
“Hey, I heard about him trying to break in at the hospital.”

  
“Yeah, he also tried it at the house. He figured out where Maddie’s window was.” She shuddered at the thought. “That’s why I need to arrest him once and for all. This way, my kids can finally heal from all their pain.”

  
Wash understood how she felt. Both of his kids came from abusive families. “I know how you feel. It was similar to Chloe and David’s families.” He thought for a second. “Maybe I could go with you.” He needed to approach her carefully, he knew how stubborn and prideful she got.

  
“Absolutely not. You have Tucker and the kids to think about. I’ll have enough to worry about without being worried over protecting you.”

  
“Me? You have Emily and the girls. We’ve always gotten through battles protecting each other.”

  
Wash had enough of being treated like a little kid when he was a part of the Freelancers. Yes, he was considered to be the weakest fighter, but he had more than enough heart to get him and Carolina through any battle that came their way.

  
She bit her lip, she didn’t mean to insult him. “I know Wash, I’ve thought of them. That’s why I need to do this, to protect my girls…you know I’ve had issues trying to fit in to this family thing…all I know how to do is to protect the ones I love.”

  
“You’re definitely doing something right. Emily and the girls love you a lot. We all love you, we wouldn’t have survived this long without you.”

  
Tears welled in her eyes, she didn’t want Wash to see them. “Thanks Wash, I needed to hear that. Don’t worry about me, I’m a true warrior, remember? I’ll see you later.”

  
“Sure, I remember. I’ll see you.” He thought to himself. “A lot sooner than you think.” His best friend would not be going at this alone. Not if he could help it.

Carolina stopped by the house. She heard Emily and Maddie’s laughter from the spare bedroom. She took a peek in the room to see what they were up to.

  
She gasped when she saw the mess. Grey had seven gallons of paint, all in different colors spread over the beige carpet. Drops of paint were already splattered over it. The wall where they planned to set up the crib had the different colors painted on it.

  
“Emily! What in the world are you doing?” She would expect this mess from Maddie, not her own wife.

  
Grey chuckled as she looked around the room. “Weeelll… we had a liiiitlle trouble deciding what color Allie would like her room…”

  
Maddie interrupted. “We picked ‘em all.”   
“Yeah I know it looks like a mess now, but just wait. It’ll look like a rainbow room when we’re done.”

  
Carolina looked at the floor. “Does that include the carpet too?”

  
Grey looked guilty. “Oopsiie, That kinda happened. But I think it looks good, I can definitely splatter the rest of it. It’ll look intentional.”

  
Carolina groaned and shook her head. She forgot how talking to Grey could give her such a migraine sometimes. “I thought Meredith can only babysit until six. You’ll never have this all done by the time Allie comes home.”

  
“True, but I think it’s best for her to set her crib in our bedroom for a few days so she gets used to this place. That’s what I did for Maddie, it helped a lot.”

  
“Fine whatever, as long as you know what you’re doing.” Carolina hesitated, she really should tell Grey about the mission, but she didn’t want to say it in front of Maddie.

  
Grey knew from the look on Carolina’s face that something was up. She wouldn’t push the subject, Carolina would tell her when she was ready. Instead, she shoved a paintbrush in her face. “Ya know, this would go a lot faster if you help.”

  
Carolina made a face. “You know I’m not artistic like you and Maddie. I’ll mess it up for you.”

  
Maddie looked up from her painting. She didn’t watch where she had the paintbrush pointed and red paint smeared through her blond hair. “I’ll share my paint with you Mommy.”

  
Carolina grabbed a rag and tried to wipe it off of her. It only smeared worse. “Well, I don’t know how you’re going to get that out of your hair.”

  
Maddie just shrugged. “I’ll have red hair like you do Mommy.”

  
Carolina gave up and laughed. Her family was too crazy for her to understand. She figured she better help Maddie, they would have a rainbow colored child by the time she was done. She snatched the paintbrush from Grey’s hand. “Fine, I give up.”

  
Carolina forgot all about her stress as she painted and listened to Grey’s endless chatter about nothing in particular. Being able to relax and joke around with her family was so relaxing.

  
Grey sighed dramatically as she stood back to inspect her work. “Whew, this should about do it for now. We got enough time to get little miss Maddie cleaned up and pick up the little sprout.”

  
Carolina’s text message buzzed. The message was what she was awaiting for from Kimball. “Come on down to my office, the warrant is waiting.”

  
Shit, now she really had to tell Emily. Turned out that her wife knew her so well, that she didn’t have to say anything. Grey knew Carolina was hiding something.

  
Grey came out of the bathroom with clean paintbrushes and a clean daughter, she knew she had to distract Maddie.

“Hey Maddie, how about you grab the stuffed horse you picked out for Allie. We’ll surprise her with it.”

  
“‘K Momma.” She went to her room.  
Carolina squirmed, what should she tell her? Grey beat her to it. “Okay, out with it. What did Kimball say?”

  
“I gave a one night arrest warrant to bring William Ferguson to justice. I was trying to keep Maddie from hearing it. She’s upset as it is.”

  
Grey looked her deeply in the eyes. “This is what you really want to do?”

  
She nodded confidently. “I need to this.”

  
“Okay, you have my blessing, torture the asshole for me. I’ll help out anyway I can. Just remember the girls, they really need you to come home. Especially Maddie, she can’t handle losing another parent.”

  
Carolina nodded impatiently. “I’m the best there ever was, of course I’m coming home. You worry too much.” She went to wash the paint off of her hands so she could get ready.

  
Grey stood watching her quietly. “I couldn’t handle losing you either…”  
  
  
  
  



	16. Chapter 16

Carolina went down to the hospital with Grey and Maddie for Allie’s official discharge from the hospital. She planned to go straight from there to Kimball’s office. They had to relieve Meredith Simmons of her babysitting duties.

  
Simmons had showed up. He was teaching Allie to play peek-a-boo, she was loving it. Meredith sat by, knitting on a red sweater and smiling as she heard the baby giggling. She smiled hello as Grey and Carolina came through the door. Maddie ran over to play with Allie and Simmons.

  
“Sorry to not be able to sit longer, but I have a date tonight.”

  
Simmons looked up in shock. “You seriously have a date?” This was a shock to him.

  
“Who’s the lucky guy?” Grey was in the mood for some good gossip.

  
“This nice Southern gentleman. He was in the army with you Dick. He goes by the nickname Sarge.”

  
Carolina had to fight the urge to laugh. Sarge of all people being called a ‘Southern gentleman’. But, Meredith’s first husband had been a jerk. At least Sarge would treat her well. That’s what counted.

  
Simmons’ shock turned to approval. Sarge was the type he would have picked for a father. “If you two get married, I’m calling him Dad.” He sounded way too excited.

  
Carolina groaned. This was bringing back too many memories of losing her sanity with the Reds and Blues. “As much as I would love reliving all our military memories, I have a job to get too.”

  
Grey looked troubled as she kissed her goodbye. Maddie and Allie were her kids too, she should be responsible for their safety too. She made up her mind that regardless of what Carolina thought, she was helping.

Carolina stepped out of the locker room wearing her beloved turquoise colored armor. The moment she slipped the Rogue helmet on, she remembered why the military was where she was meant to be. If only for one night.

  
She was in shock when she heard Grey’s high pitched voice calling out. “Hieee ‘Lina, guess who came to see you off!”

  
She saw Grey standing in the locker room, holding Maddie’s hand and pushing Allie in the brand new stroller. “Emily…what are you guys doing here?”

  
Maddie gasped when she saw Carolina, she had never seen her in the armor before. She trembled and hid behind Grey’s leg. She didn’t want to look at this scary blue creature.

  
Carolina slipped off the helmet. “No Maddie, it’s only me, you’re safe.”

  
It took her a second, the sight of that familiar red hair and bright green eyes calmed her down. She stopped hiding and moved closer. Carolina held out her hand to encourage her to come closer.

  
A big smile slowly spread over Maddie’s face as she took ahold of her hand. “Wow, Mommy’s a superhero!”

  
Carolina chuckled over it. “Yeah, something like that. What are you guys doing here?”

  
“I made some babysitting plans with Simmons. He agreed to watch the girls tonight so I can help you.”

  
Carolina made a face. “Em, you’re a civilian, technically you can’t help. I appreciate the thought though.”

Grey’s face took the same pose Maddie’s took before throwing a temper tantrum. Carolina cringed, there would be no way out of this one.

  
“I will be getting the inside info from Nicole so Kimball can radio them to you.” Her voice faltered, she looked on the verge of crying. “I want to do this for you, these are my kids too, I need to do something…besides, Kimball already told me I could help.”she added that last part in quickly.

  
Dr. Grey was the only person on the planet who could stand up to Carolina and survive it. She knew when she was beat.

“Fine, just let me do my job.” Grey would be safe enough with Kimball to protect her.

  
This mission hadn’t even started yet and it wasn’t going the way Carolina planned it. Then it got worse. Wash came through the door, dressed in full armor. He carried his grey and yellow helmet in his hand. Carolina instinctively glared at him.

  
He held up his hand to stop her. “‘Lina shut up, you don’t have to tell me, I already know you don’t need my help. I can’t let you go this alone, we’re a team, we’ve always been a team.” He gave her such a pleading look, that she didn’t have the heart to slug him.

  
Carolina rolled her eyes while Grey squealed. “Yay, it’s like we’re having a party!”

  
How did she get mixed up with these people? “Oh my god, I hate you both right now! Okay Wash, just be careful and stay out of my way. This jerk is mine, I owe it to the kids.”

  
Maddie tugged at her armored glove. “Mommy, are you after the bad man?”

  
“Yes Maddie, he needs to be stopped.”

  
Her eyes filled with tears. “Don’t Mommy, he’s really mean.”

  
Carolina knelt in front of her. “Don’t worry about me, I’m really mean too.”

  
Maddie shook her head as the tears streamed down her face. “No you’re not, you’re really nice. That’s why I love you.”

  
Maddie was so much smarter than anyone gave her credit for. “I love you too. It’ll be fine, honest.” She got ready to leave with Wash trailing behind her.

  
When Grey and the kids were out of earshot, Wash had to being a point up to Carolina. “You know, in a way, Maddie’s right. You’re not the same person you were back in the Freelancers. You changed for the better. Could you really kill this guy, even if he deserves it?”

  
She didn’t want to tell him the truth, she had to lie. “Of course I will.” But she didn’t know.

Grey invited Kimball to her office for their radio surveillance. They had a sulking Nicole in handcuffs sitting in the back of the room.

If she wanted to stay out of jail, she had to help them. But no one said she had to be happy about it.

  
She sighed over dramatically, but cooperated. “Will is staying at the Days Inn over on University Avenue. He always was a cheapo. He likes to go to bed early, it was an ex-military thing. He’s probably asleep by now.”

  
Grey smiled patronizingly at her. “Good girl, this isn’t so hard now is it?”

  
She glared at Grey, but she kept her distance. She didn’t know how crazy the doctor could get. “Since I got you a good start with catching Will, can I have a bathroom break?”

  
Grey glared back. “No way, I don’t want heroin shot up in my bathroom.”

  
“Hey, I’ve been clean for two whole days!” She was getting way too loud.

  
Kimball had to snap at both of them. “Shut up, both of you. Emily, let her go. We got enough information out of her for now. I need it to be quiet in here so I can hear Carolina.”

  
Grey nodded and unlocked Nicole’s cuffs. Grey listened closely to the radio transmissions, straining to hear Carolina’s voice. She was so worried about her.

  
Kimball set the radio down. “Shit, we need Nicole back in here. What was William’s room number again? Emily, go get her.”

  
As Grey entered the bathroom, she knew something was wrong. Nicole was talking softly on her phone to someone.

  
“No honey listen, you need to watch, they’re coming for you. Beware of the solider in turquoise armor. Shoot the grey one first, that’ll make the tougher one easier to kill…”

  
Grey swung the door back. “You bitch, you sold us out.” She grabbed her sleeve and dragged her to Kimball.

She forced the radio from Kimball’s hand and screamed through Carolina’s headset  
“Don’t babe, it’s a trap. Nicole set us up, you and Wash get out of there NOW!”

She screamed as loud as she could.  
She heard a gunshot, then the radio went dead. She dropped the radio as she cried out in agony. She kept telling herself that Carolina wasn’t dead, she couldn’t be.

  
Emily Grey just wished her broken heart could believe that…  
  



	17. Chapter 17

Carolina squinted as she searched for road signs. She had been used to not wearing a helmet for long, that it was hard to see properly. “What the hell did that street sign say? Wash, you’re driving too fast. Everything looks blurry.”

  
Wash had to chuckle at her. “Remember how you and York made fun of me for not being used to wearing the helmets?”

  
She shot him a dirty look, but he couldn’t see it because of the helmet. “Shut up, I’m talking about reading a street sign from a distance, not crashing into walls like a dork.”

  
He cringed, he would never live that down. “Hey, it only happened once…”

  
“Hush, I think this street it.” She turned her attention to the radio. “Vanessa, we got the street. I see the Motel, we’ll be heading in.”

  
Wash went on ahead and Carolina was backing him up, her gun was all ready to go. Wash was unsure what room number Kimball said was William’s. It wasn’t like he could tell from the outside of the building.

  
“Shit, ‘Lina which room do I go to, I forget.”

  
Carolina groaned. “Damnit Wash, you were supposed to be paying attention. Just lay low, I guess I got to radio Kimball.” She knew she should’ve brought him.

  
She waited for Kimball’s response, Grey high pitch shriek came over the radio. There was so much static, Carolina could hardly make out what she was saying. She tried to turn down the volume, William could be listening.

  
Carolina tried to whisper as loud as she could. “Em, stop it, we’re at the location. William is going to hear you.”

  
All she could make out was the word trap, then it dawned on her, they were set up. All her Freelancer instincts came flooding back. She just knew, she had to protect Wash.

  
“Wash no!” She lunged and pushed him out of the way, mere seconds before a bullet came flying at his helmet. He wouldn’t have survived another head shot.

  
She felt the bullet go through her right shoulder, but strangely, she didn’t feel pain. All she felt was revenge.

  
This asshole shot her, tried to kill Wash, threatened her family, and hurt and terrorized the two kids she loved more than anything. William Ferguson signed his own death warrant. He shot an officer, she was well within her rights.

  
William’s look of hatred turned to shock when he seen Carolina didn’t fall down. She kept moving towards him. He aimed his pistol at her a second time. The gun jammed, he screamed out and threw it away. This was Carolina’s chance.

  
Her left hook sent him flying into the wall. His nose was bleeding, it was probably broken; she was glad. William held onto his nose and started begging for his life. “Please… don’t kill me.”

  
“Give me one good reason not to. You’re a lousy excuse for a human being. The world would be better off without you.”

She balled up her fist again, she wanted to make him suffer.

  
“No, have mercy.”

  
“Mercy? What kind of mercy did you show your kids before you beat the hell out of them?” On a second thought, she pulled out her handgun, she wanted to get in some extra target practice in anyway.

  
William flinched and waited for her to pull the trigger, tears streamed down his face. She hesitated when she saw the look of terror in his eyes. She didn’t want to have second thoughts, he was a child abuser.

  
His look haunted her, it was the same look of terror in Maddie’s eyes when she awoke from a night terror or flashed back to her constant abuse. Maddie’s words ran through her head when she said that Carolina would never act like her dad.

  
He was the true monster, Carolina wasn’t. If she pulled that trigger, she would be no better than he was. She slowly lowered the gun.

  
He let out a relieved chuckled. “Yeah, I knew you couldn’t do it.”

  
Without warning, she decked him with her left fist again. This time, she knocked him out cold. There, that should do it. She felt Wash’s hands on her back, she dropped her gun to the floor.

  
She was so tired, she couldn’t stand up anymore. She wasn’t aware she was bleeding out until she saw the pool of blood on the floor. “‘Lina, hang on. I radioed back to Kimball, Emily is on her way to help you. Hang in there, stay with me ‘Lina.”

  
She heard Wash’s muffled voice, he sounded like he was talking to her through a fog. She watched with satisfaction as Wash handcuffed William Ferguson. The girls’ nightmares could end.

  
She wanted so much to drag the unconscious perp down to the jail herself, but she couldn’t feel anything. Everything went dark…

Carolina woke with a start. She recognized the bright fluorescent lights of the hospital. They were always too bright, it drove her crazy. She felt someone holding her hand, she barely had the strength to look. She was so stiff, she wondered how long she had been here.

  
She expected to see Grey sitting with her, but she recognized that blond, buzzed haircut. “Wash, what’s going on?”

  
He sat up with a start, he had been half asleep. “Hey ‘Lina, you gave us a scare there. You were shot in the shoulder, the bullet went clean through. It shattered your shoulder blade, you had a minor surgery last night to repair it. You also needed a blood donor, you damn near bled to death by the time I could calm you down.”

  
He held up his arm to show her how bruised it was, the needle mark was still very red. “You were my blood donor?” Carolina had to hold back a laugh.

  
He shrugged. “Well, we’re both type O, so I figured what the heck. But you owe me one, that wife of yours is dangerous with a needle.” He shuddered at the memory.

  
“Thank you Wash…for everything. But next time will you listen to me and stay out of it? I could have lost you today, we’re lucky it was only my shoulder and not your head.”

  
“Yeah, I learned my lesson. The next bad guy is completely yours.” He stopped for a second. “There is something with this case I need to ask you.”

  
Carolina frowned. “Sure, ask me anything.”

  
“You had every reason to shoot that guy, especially when he pulled the gun on us. The old Carolina would have snapped his neck, I probably would have thought about doing it too, why didn’t you do it?”

  
She hesitated, her face turned red. “It’s stupid, but it’s because of Maddie. She pretty much told me I wasn’t a monster, if I killed William, it made me no better than him. I want to be a good role model for my girls. Anyway, rotting in jail is better than a quick death.”

  
Wash gave her a knowing smile. “And you were worried about not catching on to this parent thing. Looks like you know more than you think. Keep up the good work ma’am.” He gave her a salute and patted her hand as he got up to leave.

  
“You’re leaving already Wash?”

  
“You got two little someone’s out in the waiting room, wanting to see you. You also have a big, loud mouthed one who’s been rushing me all night. Spend some time with your family.”

  
She smiled as she laid back down against the pillows. ‘Family’, she was liking the sound of that dreaded word.  



	18. Chapter 18

Carolina heard the hospital door open. Grey came in with Allie in her arms. “Hey babe, I’m glad you’re awake. I thought Wash would never leave.”

  
Carolina was still woozy from the anesthesia, she could hardly sit up. It took all her strength just to smile, but she didn’t care. Seeing that all three of her girls were safe made this whole ordeal worth it. “Hi guys, I missed you.”

  
Maddie was holding onto Grey’s leg, she was suddenly shy around Carolina. With the big bandage on her shoulder and pale, sickly look on her face, she didn’t look like Carolina to Maddie, she looked like a stranger.

  
Grey had to gently push her forward. “What’s wrong honey? Go see your Mommy.”

  
Maddie still hesitated. Carolina held out her good arm to here. “Come here sweetie, I need a hug.”

  
The sound of her voice broke Maddie out of the trance. She gave a big smile, she knew for sure who Carolina was.

“Mommy Mommy, I missed you!” She ran to give Carolina a big hug.

  
Grey got a little worried. “Easy honey, her other arm is hurt. You need to be careful.”

  
Carolina made a face, she hated being treated like an invalid.”Seriously Emily, I’m not that hurt. It was only my shoulder, I’m okay.”

  
“No sweetie, you had a bullet tear your shoulder apart, which then had to be repaired with pins and screws. No, you’re not okay.”

  
Maddie hated it when her mothers argued. She climbed up on the hospital bed to sit with Carolina. She leaned her head against her good shoulder and handed her a crumpled piece of colored paper. “Here Mommy, so you can feel better.” She turned shy again.

  
Carolina carefully un crumpled it. “What is this?” She smoothed out the paper to see that Maddie drew her a rainbow. “Aww, it’s beautiful. Thank you.”

  
She hid her face against Carolina’s arm. “You really like it?”

  
“Of course I do, you’re a great artist.”

  
Maddie’s cheeks turned pink. She liked to be encouraged. “Yayy!”

  
Allie cooed and reached for Carolina. She missed her Mom too. Maddie moved over some so Carolina could hold her with her good arm.

  
Grey settled some papers on Carolina’s lap. Their argument was already forgotten. “Maddie’s not the only one with a get well gift for you.”

  
She looked down at them. She saw Allie’s name on them. “What are those?”

  
“Allie’s adoption papers. Her Mom was a skank, but she did sign away all her rights to Allie before she was carted off to jail for aiding and abetting a criminal. As soon as your signature is beside mine on these papers, she’s officially ours.”

  
Carolina was choked up. She thought it would take forever until they had full custody. Her biggest fear was that Nicole would get her back. “Wow, this is major news.”

  
Grey thrust a pen in her face. “Here, sign them, sign them, sign them!” She sounded like an impatient kid.

  
“You’re being awful pushy for someone who said I was hurt.” It hurt her to write, but she signed all the lines she had to. “There, it’s done.”

  
Grey gave a big smile and made a big production out of it. “I hear by announce that this precious little sprout will be forever known as Allison Caroline Grey.”

  
Carolina frowned. “Her middle name is actually Caroline?” What were the odds?

  
“Ehh, not exactly. Their rat parents never gave her one. I decided we should name her after you.”

  
Allie looked up at her family and yawned. She wasn’t terribly impressed. She settled against her sister and planned on a long nap. She knew she was where she belonged.

“Oh Allison, don’t throw your strained peas, eat them!” Dr. Grey narrowly ducked in time to avoid getting hit with baby food. Allie laughed over cleverness.

  
Two months later, and baby Allie was almost completely recovered from her ordeal. At six months old, her spunk and attitude kept both her mothers on the run.

Grey tried to wipe up the mess, but Allie had more on her face than she did in her mouth.

  
Maddie was at the kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal, laughing along with Allie’s antics. “She looks so funny.” The more Maddie laughed, the more Allie acted up. She liked having an audience.

  
Grey pretended to look strict at Maddie. “You’re no help over there Madeline. You’re encouraging her bad behavior. You girls are partners in crime.”

  
She gave her a teasing wink and reached over to tickle Maddie, which made her laugh harder. It made her spill her glass of milk. Maddie stopped laughing and looked like she  
was going to cry.

“No honey, it’s okay. It’s my fault, not yours.” Maddie felt a little better.

  
Carolina walked into the kitchen for her morning coffee, saw the mess of peas and milk and shook her head. “I told you this would happen, Allie only likes certain foods.”

  
Grey tried to clean off Allie’s face. “That’s why I need to introduce her to new foods, she needs variety.”

Allie struggled and squirmed away from Grey. She gave up and let her have the food on her face. “It’s good for her.”

  
“Not if you can’t make her eat it. She knows what she likes and what she doesn’t like, quit forcing her. She’ll come around on her own.”

  
Grey made a face, she knew Carolina was right. “I’m not forcing her, I’m encouraging her.”

  
Carolina felt confident, she won. She reached for a towel to help Maddie clean up her milk. She winced from the sharp pain in her nearly recovered shoulder.

  
Grey looked up. “You okay babe?”

  
“Yeah sure, just a little stiff.” She needed to change the subject.

  
Simmons knocked on the door. He had the twins and an unhappy looking Dex with him. “Hi Emily, hope we’re not too early. I appreciate you watching the twins for me so I can take Dex to his eye appointment.”

  
“No problem! Hi kids, you’re just in time for feeding time at the jungle. Excuse the mess and help yourselves to breakfast.”  
She noticed Dex’s sullen mood. “What’s wrong Dexie?”

  
“I don’t want glasses, I’ll look dumb. All the kids will make fun of me at school. Dad, I wanna go home.”

  
Simmons sighed, he had been through this so many times. “If you need the glasses, you are wearing them. Nobody is going to make fun of you.”

  
Jake butted in. “But I wear glasses.”

  
Dex made a face. “Yeah, that’s exactly my point.”

  
Mira got angry at him. “Don’t worry about the other kids Dex, I’ll make plenty of fun at you.”

  
“See Dad…”

  
Simmons grabbed his sleeve and dragged him out the door. “Thanks again Emily, we won’t be long.”

  
Mira was right at Grey’s side. “Can I play with Allie today?”

  
“Well…she’s still too little, but we can all play together. When she gets older, I know you’ll be a great babysitter. First, let’s get this little sprout all cleaned up.”

  
Mira tugged at Grey’s sleeve. “Can I help?”

  
“Sure you can.”

  
Maddie jumped off her chair. “I wanna help too.”

  
This left Jake all alone with Carolina. His face turned bright red. Girls made him nervous, and like his father, he was terrified of Carolina. She smiled softly, he was Simmons’ little clone.

  
“How are you doing Jake?” She finished her coffee and had to get ready for work.

  
“Fi…fine.” He looked down at the floor.

  
He was a nice kid, she wouldn’t make him suffer. “Help yourself to some orange juice. Em and the girls will be right back.” She went to leave, she gently patted his shoulder as she went past.

  
When Jake realized he wouldn’t be killed, he actually kind of liked Carolina. “Tt…hank you.”

When she left for work, Emily and the kids were all playing on the swings. Allie had her little baby swing that she loved. The twins took turns pushing Maddie.

  
Grey looked up and waved. “Don’t forget later, play date at the park, just the four of us.”

  
“I won’t Em.” She wouldn’t miss it for the world.

  
Maddie called out. “Bye Mommy!”

  
Carolina found she had tears in her eyes. “Bye sweeties, see you later.” She stood for a second, taking in her family before leaving. This family thing didn’t exactly work out as Carolina planned, but they were hers.

  
She would never, ever let them go.


End file.
